Market research
The Dutch brewing giant Heineken, has taken its first steps into the Russian market by agreeing to acquire Russian brewery Bravo International for as much as US$400m.
The final sale price is conditional on Bravo meeting volume and price targets in the next 12 months.
The company said the acquisition is a first step "towards achieving a broad market position in Russia." Heineken has had export operations in Russia since the early 1980s.
The deal will give the brewer well positioned local brands and the opportunity in the future to produce Heineken locally, an opportunity which will give the company "a competitive advantage in the Russian premium market, since Russia has very high import duties."
Announcing the deal Heineken said the acquisition would have a positive effect on the net profit per share in 2002. Heineken expects that the Russian beer market will rank in the top five global beer markets in a few years time.
Bravo International, based in St. Petersburg, has a 17% market share in the St. Petersburg region and a 7% share in the Moscow area. The brewery started production in 1999, and has a capacity of 5m hectolitres.
Companies: Heineken
