MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Uruguay: PepsiCo opens new storage plant in Colonia complex

“This venture is everything that is right in terms of investment for Uruguay,” Oddone said

Uruguayan President Yamandú Orsi participated on Tuesday in the inauguration of a new PepsiCo beverage concentrate storage plant in the Colonia free-trade zone after an investment of over US$100 million. The facility, which has been in continuous operation since 1993, will supply 24 markets in Latin America and other regions.

The project was initially announced with a $64 million investment plan, but ended up costing over US$100 million. The new 5,500-square-meter warehouse increases the company's storage capacity by 55%.

Uruguayan officials, including Orsi and Economy Minister Gabriel Oddone, praised the investment, highlighting that it generates high-skilled employment, particularly for women, and solidifies Uruguay as a reliable and stable country for international business. “This venture is everything that is right in terms of investment for Uruguay,” Oddone said.

“We have to compete internationally to attract investment, making use of current regulations, but adapting them to the new reality,” he further argued, while noting that PepsiCo was one of Uruguay's top exporters, with an annual volume of nearly US$800 million.

“Beyond the fact that Uruguay continues to introduce innovations and modifications to become a more integrated country in the world, the changes in the tax and investment regime that we are expressly introducing in the budget law only serve to strengthen the link with companies like this one,” Oddone also mentioned.

The initiative involved 25 national companies, nine of them from the Colonia area. It also generated 85 direct and more than 180 indirect jobs during construction. PepsiCo currently employs over 350 people in Uruguay.

PepsiCo's international CEO, Eugene Willemsen, affirmed the company's long-term commitment to Uruguay, calling it a “reliable and stable country” and a “center of innovation and excellence.”

Also attending the ceremony were Ministers Fernanda Cardona (Industry and Energy) and Mario Lubetkin (Foreign Affairs), Colonia Mayor Guillermo Rodríguez, and PepsiCo Colonia Plant General Manager Martín Chacin, who underscored that Uruguay was “the only country in South America” where the company “operates three business units—food, beverages, and concentrates—and ranks among Uruguay's leading export companies,” reaffirming its “commitment to local and regional development.”

PepsiCo is one of the world's leading food and beverage companies. With a portfolio of well-known brands, such as Pepsi, Lay's, Gatorade, and many others, the company is present in more than 200 countries. In Uruguay, PepsiCo stands out for its production of beverage concentrates for export, making it a key pillar of the country's economy.