COCA COLA TO FURTHER INCREASE ITS SUCCESSFUL ENTERPRISE IN RUSSIA

NEW YORK, June 10 (Itar-Tass) - The Coca-Cola system has a long-term commitment to Russia, which has the potential to be one of the world's most powerful economies in the next ten to fifteen years, said Muhtar A. Kent, President and Chief Operating Officer of The Coca-Cola Company. Along with the CEOs of major international companies he took part in the XII Saint-Petersburg International Economic Forum that ended Sunday. "Even during the height of the financial crisis in 1998, we never considered pulling out of the business or scaling down our investments", he said in an interview with ITAR-TASS. "Now, we are looking to further increase our successful enterprise in Russia". According to Mr. Kent, Coca-Cola is "on the forefront of non-alcoholic ready-to-drink beverage innovation". "As part of the framework of the XII Saint-Petersburg International Economic Forum we presented our new product in Russia - natural kvass "Krushka & Bochka" (Mug & Barrel), as the kvass category is one of the most dynamic in the Russian beverage market", he said. Kvass is a traditional Russian drinking produced by brewing. It resembles in some ways a non-alcoholic beer. The Coca-Cola system in Russia has invested $1.8 billion USD since the early 1990's; this figure will increase to $3 billion USD in the next 3-5years, Kent said. "Russia is one of the top growth countries for The Coca-Cola Company. Today we enjoy strong double-digit growth across every category", he went on saying. According to him the company "will work hard to be part of the fabric of Russia's economic development as we continue to invest in our business, create jobs and stimulate growth across our supply chain". He said that the attitudes of CEOs of international companies towards the investment climate and opportunities in Russia "are generally very positive". "The CEOs recognise that positive image of Russia is different from what they see in the international media," Kent said.