Coca-Cola HBC’s plan to buy Irish vending machines company BDS Vending Solutions has become the focus of a full-scale investigation from the State’s competition watchdog.
The Competition and Consumer Protection (CCPC) said on Friday it will carry out a so-called phase two investigation into the deal, which was announced in February without the financial terms being disclosed.
Coca-Cola HBC, a Switzerland-headquartered bottler of Coca-Cola Company products, agreed the multimillion euro transaction through a subsidiary in Northern Ireland.
“Following a preliminary examination the CCPC has now decided that a full phase two investigation is needed to establish whether the purchase will result in a substantial lessening of competition in the State,” the competition authority said in a statement.
BDS Vending, founded in 1993, is a well established food and drink vending services business in Ireland with a fleet of approximately 2,000 vending machines. It was founded by David Mullan and Brian Berry, who had agreed to lead the business through the ownership change.
Coca-Cola HBC is mainly in the business of the bottling and distribution of a range of drinks but also offers full-service vending solutions to customers, including the installation, operation and servicing of vending machines. BDS Vending, which is based in Dublin, offers full vending solutions to its customers, including machine sales, supply, operation, servicing and customer support services.
Coca-Cola HBC, in which the Atlanta, Georgia-based Coca-Cola Company holds a 20 per cent stake, said last month that it saw a drop in Irish sales in the first six months of 2024 as a result of the introduction of the deposit return scheme.
Publishing its half-year results on Wednesday, the company said that Irish sparkling drinks volumes fell by “mid single digits,” while energy products delivered “high single digit” growth on tough comparatives. However, still drinks sold in the Republic declined by high single digits, driven by water, the company added.
Despite its impact on volumes it said the introduction of the deposit return scheme in Ireland as well as in Hungary was “encouraging to see”, adding that it will continue to support the launch of “well-designed” schemes to ensure high packaging collection rates.
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