Turkmenistan Coca-Cola Bottlers Ltd., engaged in the production and distribution of soft drinks, is on the verge of closure and has already stopped production.
The company has faced difficulties with currency conversion, problems with the import of ingredients needed for the production of beverages and pressure from local business companies.
Only remains of beverages produced earlier are now available in the country. Due to the stoppage of production, the prices for a bottle of Coca-Cola rose from 4-5 turkmen manats ($1.1-1.4 at the rate of the Central Bank of Turkmenistan) to 8-9 manats ($2.2-2.5).
Coca-Cola Turkmenistan has been operating in the country since 1998. As of February 18, 2009, Turkmenistan Coca-Cola Bottlers Ltd. operates as a subsidiary of Coca-Cola Icecek A.S. Production volumes amounted to 88 million bottles per year. (Trend/Business World Magazine)