India-based PepsiCo bottler Varun Beverages has set out plans for a fundraising round.

The publicly-listed company is planning to raise funds through a QIP, or qualified institutional placement.

The group, listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange, said in a filing it is looking to bring in Rs75bn ($893.3m) through the issuance of new shares.

Varun Beverages' board has approved the plan, which will see the shares issued in at least one tranche, subject to shareholder approval.

In a stock-exchange filing, the company said it is lining up to use the funds to invest in subsidiaries or JVs, or to fund the growth of its operations through NPD, geographic expansion or to make "strategic acquisitions". The bottler said it could also use the funds to pay down debt.

Among the group's capital projects underway are plans to invest $50m in a new Pepsi cola production facility in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

It will be situated in Kiswishi, a private special economic zone near the city of Lubumbashi in the south-west of the country.

Varun Beverages has been a franchisee for PepsiCo’s soft drinks brands such as Mountain Dew, Miranda and 7-Up since the 1990s.

The Indian bottler has operated in Africa since 2007. Its presence in the continent includes facilities in Morocco, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

In December, Varun Beverages entered South Africa via the acquisition of fellow PepsiCo bottler The Beverage Company (Bevco).

Bevco is a South African manufacturer and distributor that holds franchise rights for PepsiCo in South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini. It also has additional distribution rights for Namibia and Botswana.

The group operates five manufacturing sites in South Africa: two in Johannesburg and one each in Durban, East London and Cape Town. It held the licence to produce PepsiCo brands including Pepsi, 7Up Free, Mirinda and Mountain Dew.