OREANDA-NEWS. April 21, 2011. The EBRD is providing a new USD 2.5 million loan to Taj Aqua Vita LLC, one of the largest producers of water and soft drinks in Azerbaijan, and the owner of the popular Aqua Vita and Gulustan brands, to help the company increase its production capacity and to improve its operational efficiency, reported the press-centre of EBRD.

The EBRD’s loan will finance part of the company’s capital expenditures programme and will be used to purchase a new modern bottling-moulding line. The new equipment will be used in producing plastic (PET) bottles and help the company achieve at least a twofold increase in its production capacity and to streamline its operations.

“With this investment, the EBRD is pleased to help Aqua Vita implement its capital expenditures strategy. This project continues our partnership with Aqua Vita, which over the years has shown its commitment to introducing international management standards,” said Francis Delaey, Head of EBRD Resident Office in Azerbaijan.

Established in 1997, Taj LLC is a private locally-owned water and soft drinks company and one of the very few companies in Azerbaijan holding international standards quality certification. It sources its water from a spring in Khudat, 200 kilometres north of the capital Baku.

The EBRD has been operating in Azerbaijan since the country’s independence in 1991 and to-date has invested USD 1.6 billion. The Bank’s activities are focused on the financial sector, the real economy outside oil and gas and the development of the country’s infrastructure. In 2010 the EBRD signed 13 projects worth a total USD 76.7 million.