"Sorry, we had a delay getting the proper documents from the government," are words well known to every Cretan builder . . . and, apparently, they're very familiar in Russian, too.

Задержка документа, or document delays, is the reason given by the Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company, the world’s second-largest bottler of Coca-Cola beverages, for postponing the opening of its plant in Russia.

Construction of the factory, in the southern region of Rostov, is now scheduled to be completed in April or May, said Yana Guskova, spokeswoman for the Greek company’s Russian unit. It was originally planned to be up and running by the end of last year.

“Construction requires a lot of documents and permits, and a delay in the plant’s completion has to do with that,” she said.

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