CONGO – Varun Beverages, one of the largest franchisees of PepsiCo globally, has announced a significant US$50 million investment in a Pepsi production facility in Kiswishi City, the first private Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
This facility represents one of the largest consumer-focused foreign direct investments (FDI) in the country’s history.
The new Pepsi plant will be constructed on 15 hectares (37 acres) of land within the Kiswishi City SEZ, offering strategic access to the growing population of Lubumbashi, the Haut-Katanga Province, and other regions.
The facility is expected to create thousands of jobs and support PepsiCo’s long-term growth in the DRC, further solidifying the company’s presence in the fast-expanding African market.
Ravi Kant Jaipuria, Chairman of Varun Beverages, expressed confidence in the project, stating, “Varun’s expansion will meet the rising demand for Pepsi beverages in the DRC and support our long-term growth trajectory in Africa. Our investment in Kiswishi City SEZ exemplifies our confidence in Congolese consumers and commitment to sustainable manufacturing.”
The Kiswishi City SEZ is backed by a consortium of investors from the United States, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and Norway.
The project is spearheaded by Rendeavour, Africa’s largest new city builder, which has successfully developed mixed-use cities across Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, and Zambia, contributing significantly to job creation and foreign investment.
This investment follows the opening of a bottling plant by Varun Beverages in Kinshasa in September 2024, with a capacity to produce 1.2 million bottles per day.
The new Kiswishi City plant will produce PepsiCo beverages, including Pepsi, Mirinda Orange, Mirinda Fruity, Mountain Dew, 7UP, and Aquafina bottled water, while also driving exports to neighboring countries such as the Republic of Congo, Cameroon, and Gabon.
Varun Beverages has been expanding its presence in the African Market. In July, Varun entered into an agreement with PepsiCo to manufacture and distribute snacks in Zimbabwe and Zambia.
The company said it planned to invest approximately US$7 million in establishing facilities in both countries to produce PepsiCo’s Simba Munchiez brand of snacks.
Zimbabwe’s facility is expected to be operational by October 2025, while the Zambia plant is scheduled for around April 2026.
Each of the new sites will have the capacity to produce approximately 5,000 metric tonnes of snacks annually for their respective markets.
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