Coca-Cola purchases bottling unit

ATLANTA Coca-Cola announced Friday the expansion of its business through the acquisition of one of its bottlers' North American business.

The soft drink giant confirmed the $13 billion acquisition of Coca-Cola Enterprises' entire North American business, which consists of approximately 75% of U.S. bottler-delivered volume and almost 100% of Canadian bottler-delivered volume, Coca-Cola said. In line woth this deal, Coca-Cola agreed to give up its 34% stake in CCE.

In a similar agreement, Coca-Cola and CCE have agreed in principle that CCE will buy Coca-Cola’s bottling operations in Norway and Sweden for $822 million, subject to the signing of definitive agreements, and that CCE will have the right to acquire Coca-Cola’s 83% equity stake in its German bottling operations 18 to 36 months after closing for fair value.

“We have a strong and unrelenting belief in our unique and thriving global bottling system,” Muhtar Kent, Coca-Cola CEO. “Our new North American structure will create an unparalleled combination of businesses, which will serve as our passport to winning in the world’s largest nonalcoholic ready-to-drink profit pool.”