An advanced logistics infrastructure combining high-bay storage, automation and direct integration with production and distribution processes through intelligent AI-based control systems. With an investment of €51 million, Sibeg Coca-Cola is accelerating its innovation programme and has announced the construction of a new automated high-bay warehouse in the industrial area of Catania, integrated with the existing plant.
The project was presented today, Tuesday 7 July, at the company’s Catania industrial site, during a ceremony marking the laying of the first above-ground stone of the new logistics hub.
The development represents a strategic step in the company’s growth programme. It is designed to increase operational efficiency, optimise logistics flows and support higher production volumes through a new-generation infrastructure.
The project includes the construction of a building for the automated storage of goods, with a capacity of approximately 43,000 pallet positions. It will be connected to the existing plant by an elevated tunnel, ensuring continuity and a direct link between the different production areas.
The new complex will consist of two main structures. The first will be a two-storey operational building covering more than 9,200 square metres and reaching approximately 20 metres in height, dedicated to goods handling and management. The second will be a vertical Pick Tower, the core of the automated system, covering more than 7,300 square metres and standing 28 metres high, designed to optimise storage and picking operations.
A particularly innovative feature of the project is the dual automation of both inbound and outbound flows. The new system will be one of only a few in Italy capable of automatically handling both the raw materials entering the production lines and the finished products being transferred to storage and loading bays.
Materials required for production, including caps, preforms and cans, will be conveyed automatically to the production lines, while pallets of finished products will travel in the opposite direction. The result will be a continuous, interconnected system designed to optimise processing times, efficiency and handling capacity.
The new logistics hub will also feature photovoltaic systems and battery storage, with an installed capacity of 2.1 MWp and storage capacity of 2 MWh, helping to reduce the plant’s energy impact and increase its level of energy independence.
“With this project, Sibeg Coca-Cola is taking another major step forward in industrial and organisational terms,” said General Manager Luca Busi. “Investing in advanced automation means increasing competitiveness and planning capacity, while also consolidating a modern, smart and sustainable production infrastructure in Catania, ready to meet the challenges of the coming years. It is a decision focused on the future of the company and, at the same time, a confirmation of our confidence in the local area and its ability to support growth and innovation.”
In an institutional message sent for the occasion, Italy’s Minister of Enterprises and Made in Italy, Adolfo Urso, highlighted “Sibeg’s value as one of the leading industrial companies in southern Italy, capable for 65 years of combining the strength of a major international brand with a genuine connection to Sicily’s economy and society.”
The Minister stressed that the new automated logistics platform represents an advanced industrial decision capable of strengthening the competitiveness of the Catania plant by combining innovation, energy efficiency and sustainability. He described it as a model of Made in Italy based on technology, responsibility, employment and local development.
“The laying of the first stone of the new automated high-bay warehouse represents much more than the beginning of an industrial construction project: it is tangible evidence of confidence in the future of Sicily and southern Italy,” said Luigi Sbarra, Undersecretary of State to the Presidency of the Council of Ministers with responsibility for southern Italy policies, in a video message.
“The South is not asking for shortcuts. It is asking for modern infrastructure, clear rules, efficiency and the opportunity to compete on equal terms with the regions of central and northern Italy and with the international community.”
“Sibeg is one of the pioneering companies in our industrial area: a business that has chosen to remain firmly rooted in Catania and that, over the years, has successfully anticipated developments in innovation, sustainability and automation,” said the Mayor of Catania, Enrico Trantino.
“This investment comes at a time of major renewal for the city’s production area, which the municipality, together with the regional authorities, is supporting through a €50 million infrastructure redevelopment programme covering roads, pavements, drainage, lighting and green areas. Sibeg’s decision confirms that when the public and private sectors move in the same direction, the right conditions can be created to attract investment, generate employment and strengthen the industrial future of the local area.”
The investment forms part of Sibeg Coca-Cola’s broader commitment to increasingly efficient and sustainable production models. It will also have a positive impact on employment, with the recruitment of 24 new employees, who will join the company’s current workforce of 449 people.
“Every project begins with a vision and a projection into the future,” said Marco Facchinetti, project designer and construction manager, as well as founding partner of The Blossom Avenue Partners.
“Here in Catania, a long-established company asked us to renew its facilities and increase the space available to it. What we have been developing for almost three years, however, and what we are now building, goes considerably further. The project gives shape to the factory of today, where people and machines, human intelligence and artificial intelligence coexist within a new form of mutual respect.
“We will see the development of a contemporary, clean, technologically advanced and sustainable factory, capable of integrating into the industrial landscape and adding further value to it.”
“We are honoured to have been selected by Sibeg as a partner in the construction of the new automated logistics platform in Catania,” added Alberto Gnavi, Country Director of BEG Ingénierie Italia.
“The project requires specific technical and organisational expertise and further consolidates the presence of the BEG Ingénierie Group in the industrial FMCG, or Fast-Moving Consumer Goods, sector. We are working closely with the customer and the other selected partners to deliver a highly complex, high-quality project while respecting environmental sustainability and the surrounding area.”
In addition to the construction of the new building, the project includes new logistics areas, internal road networks, equipped outdoor storage areas, and the redevelopment and expansion of the existing offices.
“We are proud to support Sibeg in a project that reflects a clear direction: placing the supply chain at the centre of the decisions that will drive growth and competitiveness,” said Luigi Panzetti, CEO of System Logistics.
“This decision marks an evolution in food and beverage supply chains, with automation moving to the heart of operations and enabling a platform capable of supporting higher volumes, speed and service quality.
“It is an integrated and continuous model, designed to evolve alongside the business and to deliver tangible improvements in operational efficiency and sustainability throughout the value chain. Flexible and scalable solutions, supported by established design capabilities and distinctive expertise, form the basis of our work alongside major groups, supporting their growth and contributing to the development of the supply chains of the future.”
“The new warehouse to be built in Catania represents a strategic investment for the local area and lays the foundations for the future development of one of Sicily’s most important production companies,” said Marco Zanisi of Lyto’s, technical partner for the project.
“This is an ambitious project, which will be developed in an area with a high level of seismic risk. In this context, we will apply the know-how accumulated over more than 60 years to deliver safe, state-of-the-art solutions.
“Structural reliability and the quality of production and installation processes are central to our work and will be fully expressed in this development. The project will enhance the skills of all the parties involved, and we will approach it with enthusiasm, fully aware of the importance of this new infrastructure for the logistics system of southern Italy.”
Construction work began in February 2026 and is scheduled for completion in July 2027. The logistics hub is expected to become fully operational in November 2027.
“Following the aseptic line, the eighth production line inaugurated last year, this investment represents a clear and tangible industrial decision: we are continuing to strengthen Sibeg Coca-Cola as an advanced production centre for southern Italy,” Luca Busi concluded during a panel discussion moderated by TG5 journalist Costanza Calabrese.
“Today, Sibeg is much more than a company: it is a model. With determination, passion and vision, we aim to become the ‘Gazelle’ of the Coca-Cola system in Italy: agile in executing plans, best in class in execution, close to customers and a leading contributor to market growth.
“We have succeeded in transforming one of the world’s strongest global companies into a locally rooted, family-run business. We have developed an offering and product portfolio tailored specifically to Sicily, turning every challenge into an opportunity and taking on the role of Innovation Hub, pilot site and testing area for the Business Unit, capable of reaching five million consumers and seven million tourists every day.”