By Graciela Ibanez
Chilean beverage company and Coca-Cola bottler Embotelladora
Andina SA (AKOA, AKOB, ANDINA-B.SN) plans to sell $600 million in
international bonds due 2023 to finance the acquisition of a
company in Brazil and general corporate purposes, a person familiar
with the deal said Monday.
Andina, Latin America's third-largest Coca-Cola bottler, in July
agreed to acquire Ipiranga, a Coke bottler with operations in the
states of Sao Paulo and Minas Gerais for 1.22 billion reais ($554
million).
Andina's announcement came on the heels of a similar deal from
Mexican soft drink bottler Coca-Cola Femsa SAB (KOF), which agreed
to purchase a Rio de Janeiro-based Coke bottler.
"The [sector's] consolidation in Brazil follows what happened in
Mexico," Chief Executive Miguel Angel Peirano said in a July
conference call with investors and analysts.
The company's executives are currently marketing the deal in the
U.S. and Europe. J.P. Morgan, Itau BBA and Santander are managing
the transaction.
Andina has operations in Chile, Brazil and Argentina, and it
expanded to Paraguay after merging with another Coca-Cola bottler
last year. It bottles and distributes Coca-Cola and other soft
drinks, fruit juices, beer and mineral water.
The Chilean beverage company reported 14.11 billion Chilean
pesos ($27 million) and CLP326.66 billion in second-quarter net
profit and sales, respectively.
-Rogerio Jelmayer contributed to this article
Write to Graciela Ibanez at graciela.ibanez@wsj.com
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