Ground being broken on Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam’s sixth plant in Long An Province on April 8. — Photo courtesy of the company

LONG AN — Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam on April 8 began construction of its sixth plant in the Hựu Thạnh Industrial Zone in Long An Province.

It is expected to cost more than US$300 million and be the largest and most modern plant for Suntory and PepsiCo in the Asia-Pacific. 

It will have an annual capacity of 800 million litres.

Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Đỗ Thành Trung said: "The Vietnamese Government commends Suntory PepsiCo for your unwavering commitment to investing and sustainably developing in Việt Nam.

“The project … is among the largest FDI investment in Long An, and expected to contribute to the socio-economic development of the Mekong Delta in general and Long An in particular.

“The plant, which will use renewable energy and the latest technologies to save natural resources, aligns with the Government’s directions in attracting foreign investment.”

Coming up on a 20-hectare site, the plant is expected to be powered by biomass and solar energy and significantly cut greenhouse gas emissions. This will be the house of products with packaging made from 100 per cent rPET along with other initiatives to save resources.

Takayuki Sanno, CEO of Suntory Beverage & Food Asia Pacific, said: “Việt Nam is among the top priority markets of Suntory, and we firmly believe in the potential and development of Việt Nam’s economy.

“The establishment of the sixth plant, the largest and most advanced facility in the region, is poised to strengthen Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam's leadership in the market. It will augment production capacity to meet demand, spur the launch of more product innovations and foster the expansion of the local supply chain, further reinforcing the company's foothold in the country.”

Jahanzeb Khan, CEO & general director of Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam, said: "The plant in Long An is going to be the largest investment in our history in Việt Nam, setting new benchmarks for productivity and sustainability and paving the way for our long-term growth.”

Nguyễn Văn Út, the Long An Party deputy secretary and People’s Committee chairman, said: “Long An strengthens investment promotion to attract technology-based and large-scale industrial development projects and especially focuses on manufacturing projects applying green technologies for sustainable development.

“Suntory PepsiCo's plant meets these criteria, and is expected to contribute greatly to the socio-economic development of Long An province in the coming years.”

With a three-decade operation in Việt Nam, the company has grown to the leading position in the beverage market, created jobs for nearly 3,000 direct employees and tens of thousands of indirect workers and has been recognised among top taxpayers in the country for multiple consecutive years.— VNS