Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov did not confirm that a letter from Russian company Bochkari had been sent to the Kremlin, asking for Coca-Cola HBC’s Russian assets to be placed under temporary management.
“I don’t know whether there was such a request. Even if there was, we never comment on internal, official or work-related correspondence,” Peskov said in response to a journalist’s question.
The case came to light on 5 November in the Russian business newspaper Kommersant. According to the newspaper’s sources, Bochkari asked in mid-October for AO Multon and OOO Multon Partners, Coca-Cola HBC’s subsidiaries in Russia, to be placed under external management and for it to be appointed interim manager. Coca-Cola HBC said it had received no notification from the Russian government of any changes to its operations in the country.
Bochkari is a Russian producer of beer and non-alcoholic drinks based in Altai Krai. It was founded in 1989 in the village of Bochkari and has since added lemonades, bottled water and other drinks to its range. It develops its own brands and sells its products in various regions of Russia.