OREANDA-NEWS. Coca-Cola Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE: CCE)(Euronext Paris: CCE) announced today that its shareowners have approved the pending transaction to create Coca-Cola European Partners plc. CCE shareowner approval represents a key step in the process of completing the transaction. A European Union listing prospectus is expected to be finalized on or about May 25, 2016, and closing is expected to occur on or about May 28, 2016.

After the closing of the transaction, Coca-Cola European Partners will be the world’s largest independent Coca-Cola bottler based on net sales and will combine the bottling operations of Coca-Cola Enterprises, Inc., Coca-Cola Iberian Partners, S.A.U., and Coca-Cola Erfrischungsgetr?nke GmbH.

Shares of Coca-Cola European Partners are expected to start trading simultaneously in New York, London, and Amsterdam on Tuesday, May 31, 2016, at 9:30 a.m. EDT/14:30 BST/15:30 CEST. In Spain, trading is expected to start on Thursday, June 2, 2016, at 6:00 a.m. EDT/11:00 BST/ 12:00 CEST.

“The creation of Coca-Cola European Partners will generate important benefits for each of our stakeholders,” said John F. Brock, chairman and chief executive officer of CCE. “As a larger, consolidated organization, the three companies will be positioned to realize synergies, capture marketplace opportunities, and to deliver shareowner value.”

Coca-Cola Enterprises, Inc. is the leading Western European marketer, producer, and distributor of nonalcoholic ready-to-drink beverages and one of the world’s largest independent Coca-Cola bottlers. CCE is the sole licensed bottler for products of The Coca-Cola Company in Belgium, continental France, Great Britain, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden. CCE operates with a local focus and has 17 manufacturing sites across Europe, where the company manufactures nearly 90 percent of its products in the markets in which they are consumed. Sustainability is core to CCE’s business, and the company has been recognized by leading organizations in North America and Europe for its progress in water use reduction, carbon footprint reduction, and recycling initiatives.