COCA-COLA HBC ITALIA INVESTS OVER 20 MILLION EUROS IN THE ORICOLA PLANT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE FIRST PRODUCTION LINE DEDICATED TO CANS

THE ABRUZZO PLANT WILL ALSO ADD CANS TO THE PRODUCTION OF RPET FORMATS, GENERATING OVER 50 NEW JOBS AT FULL CAPACITY

Oricola (AQ), 28 July 2022 - Coca-Cola HBC Italia, the main bottler of The Coca-Cola Company brand products in Italy, has announced the investment of over 20 million euros in its production site in Oricola (AQ), confirming the company's commitment to the plant and the Abruzzo region. The important investment made by the company aims to equip the production site with a new can production line, the first in the history of the plant that to date has focused the 4 current lines on the production of PET, rPET and bag-in-box products. The innovation also concerns the construction of a new room for the preparation of concentrates and a new warehouse of over 3,000^m2 dedicated to the storage of raw materials.

The investment, which is in addition to the more than 130 million euros invested in the country in recent years alone, in addition to strengthening and differentiating the plant's production capacity, will also contribute to Coca-Cola HBC Italia's sustainability strategy. The new machines will in fact have the best technology available on the market to minimize consumption: for example, the energy intensity needed to bottle a liter of beverage is expected to be reduced by more than 25%. Not only environmental sustainability, but also economic and social sustainability: once fully operational, the plant will be able to double the volumes produced and will guarantee over 50 new jobs, excluding related industries.

"Despite the difficulties in our sector related to the increase in raw material costs and the risk of sugar and plastic taxes, we continue to invest in the territories in which we operate, in order to make our plants more competitive and performing, with the consequent positive socio-economic impact on a region to which we are particularly attached"  says Frank O'Donnell, General Manager of Coca-Cola HBC Italia "Oricola is historically a state-of-the-art plant, it was among the first production sites in Italy to use 100% recycled PET. Today, with the announcement of this new modernization, we confirm the Oricola plant as a center of technological excellence and sustainability."

"The news of Coca-Cola HBC Italia's new investment in the Oricola plant in Abruzzo can only be a pleasure," says Marco Marsilio, President of the Abruzzo Region  "The planned investment strengthens Coca-Cola's presence in Abruzzo and gives a strong boost both to direct employment and to all the benefits that will derive from it for the local economy through related industries. The industrial diversification, with new production lines, highlights the managerial foresight and the desire to focus more and more on the Oricola production site. The Abruzzo Region will continue to enhance the Marsican industrial area, aware that Coca-Cola's millionaire investment represents confirmation of the strategic value of that area, capable of responding to the needs of important multinationals but also of small and medium-sized enterprises that can further grow thanks to the presence of these industrial giants."

"The news of this great investment by Coca-Cola HBC Italia in Oricola makes us particularly happy"  reiterates Antonio Paraninfi, Mayor of Oricola "In a period of difficulty for all of us, knowing that a company invests in our territory in an important way fills us with pride and optimism. Coca-Cola HBC has been operating with us for over 30 years. The new expansions and diversification of production will contribute to a long and effective collaboration in the name of respect. Hoping for an ever-increasing attention to our municipality, I address the best wishes of our community to the company, assuring a continuous collaboration. Together everything is possible."

The site, which after modernization will cover a total area of almost 45,000^m2, had already been enriched in recent years with new technologically advanced machinery and systems, such as high-efficiency compressors for blowing bottles and a trigeneration plant capable of producing electricity and hot and cold thermal energy at the same time. Once fully operational, the Oricola plant will employ over 100 direct employees and the completion of the works is scheduled for the beginning of 2024.