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The Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) Limited has commissioned three new production lines at its Asejire plant in Oyo State and Challawa plant in Kano State, reinforcing its manufacturing footprint and advancing the Coca-Cola System’s planned $1 billion investment programme in Nigeria.
The new facilities—two at Asejire and one at Challawa—were inaugurated at a ceremony attended by the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Senator John Owan Enoh. The commissioning marks the first phase of a nationwide expansion programme that will see additional production capacity added across NBC’s plants before the end of 2026.
NBC, a member of the Coca-Cola HBC Group, said the new production lines are equipped with world-class bottling technology and are designed to strengthen local manufacturing capacity while supporting the company’s long-term growth strategy in Nigeria.
Speaking at the event, the Managing Director of NBC, Goran Sladic, described the investment as a demonstration of the company’s confidence in Nigeria’s future and its commitment to expanding local production. “NBC has been part of Nigeria’s growth story for 75 years. Since 1951, we have invested in people, infrastructure, manufacturing capability and communities across the country. We are, proudly, a Nigerian company.
The three new production lines we are commissioning today at Asejire and Challawa are proof of what is achievable when that commitment is matched by an enabling policy environment, and a signal that we intend to be part of this country’s story for the next 75 years and beyond,” he said.
According to the company, the latest investments build on more than $1.5 billion already invested in its Nigerian operations over the past decade and form part of the Coca-Cola System’s five-year investment commitment announced in 2024.
The programme is expected to inject up to $1 billion into Nigeria, subject to a stable and predictable business environment.
NBC noted that the expansion would increase production capacity, strengthen its nationwide manufacturing network and enhance its ability to meet growing consumer demand while creating opportunities across its supply chain.
The company also highlighted its broader contribution to the Nigerian economy. Citing a 2024 socio-economic impact assessment conducted by global consulting firm Steward Redqueen, NBC said the Coca-Cola System generated about $1 billion in value-added economic activity in Nigeria and supported more than 160,000 livelihoods across its value chain.
The report further showed that the company created 53 indirect jobs for every direct job within the system and sourced goods and services worth about $601 million from Nigerian suppliers in 2024, underscoring its commitment to local sourcing and industrial development.
Speaking at the commissioning, Senator Enoh commended NBC for sustaining its investments in Nigeria over the past 75 years, describing the company’s continued expansion as a strong vote of confidence in the country’s industrial potential.
“Seventy-five years is not merely an anniversary; it is an argument—an argument that Nigeria is worth believing in, made not in words but in plant and payroll, and sustained across three generations. When an established company deepens its capacity, lengthens its local supply chains and spreads opportunity across Nigeria, it is not merely expanding a business. It is helping to write the industrial story this country has resolved to tell,” the minister said.
As part of activities marking its 75th anniversary, NBC also unveiled a limited-edition commemorative product label, which was presented to the minister to celebrate the company’s longstanding presence and contribution to Nigeria’s manufacturing sector.
