Interbrew bought major stake in Banja Luka Brewery

Interbrew won the tender for the sale of the Bosnian Government’s 53.9% stake in Banja Luka Brewery. With a volume of 470 000 hl beer in 2000, according to Interbrew, Banja Luka Brewery is the leading brewery in the Bosnian Serb-led Republic of Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Its main brand is called Nektar. There are five breweries in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The country is the poorest republic in the old Yugoslav federation. It has a population of 3.8m, 40% of whom are Muslims. Once completed, the acquisition of the Banja Luka Brewery will be Interbrew’s second investment in Bosnia and Herzegovina after the acquisition of the Uniline Brewery in Grude (capacity 350,000 hl beer) in 1999. No price was mentioned.

Muntons with a new structure and new faces

Alan Ridealgh and Colin West have been appointed to the board of Muntons (Holdings) plc with effect from 18 January. Alan Ridealgh has been with the company for more than 20 years, since 1995 as its Grain Director. Colin West joined Muntons in 1997, and was previously Production Director. The appointments go hand in hand with the company’s strategic refocus, under which Muntons Malt handles all grain trading and malting operations and Muntons Malt Products concentrates on malt-based products for the food industry and home brewers. Alan Ridealgh will be in charge of Muntons Malt, while Colin West will head Malt Products. It also operates additional malting capacities for 84,000 tons in Bridlington, Yorkshire, and 35,000 tons in Kirkcaldy, Fife..

So farewell then

In May, Iain Napier resigned as Chief Executive of Bass Brewers with a golden handshake worth almost £1m (US$1.4m). Under an agreement made before the sale to Interbrew, Bass agreed to pay Napier almost £1m if he terminated his employment with Bass Brewers’ purchaser. His departure came as a surprise. It was only a few months ago that Napier won a battle with Miles Templeman, formerly head of Whitbread’s brewing division, for the top job in Interbrew’s UK beer business. Rumour has it that Napier had been busy putting together a management buy-out for Bass Brewers - a move not favoured by Interbrew which has its own designs as to whom to sell Bass Brewers. Iain Napier is succeeded by Jerry Fowden with immediate effect. Fowden was Chief Operating Officer of Bass Brewers from 1994 to 1996..

Victory - of sorts

That was quick. On 23 April Britain’s High Court ruled that the government had acted unfairly when Trade and Industry Secretary Stephen Byers blocked Interbrew’s acquisition of Bass Brewers - a £2.3 bn (US$3.3 bn) acquisition which would have given Belgium’s Interbrew a leading 32% share of the British beer market. The judge backed the ruling in principle, but said that the procedure by which the conclusion was reached was unfair. Officially, Interbrew welcomed the decision of the High Court of Justice. After all, the world’s local brewer had taken the matter to court to demonstrate that it would not leave a ruling unchallenged which it considered unjust. Due to competition concerns, South African Breweries and venture capital groups had seemed to be the only potential candidates for Bass.

Spendrups to leave stock exchange

In May Spendrups brothers Jens and Ulf made an offer to shareholders to buy the remaining shares at a 36% premium. Spendrups Invest offered 42 kronor (US$4.11) in cash and a subordinated debenture with a face value of 7 kronor for each share in Spendrups AB. Spendrups is Sweden’s second largest brewing group employing more than a 1,000 people. Revenues from the beer business were 38% in 1999. In 1997 Spendrups’ share price was more than 70 kronor but has dropped since and languished in the doldrums. The lack of interest in Spendrups’ shares has made it impossible for the company to raise funds through the stock market. Therefore the brothers decided to buy back the company which was listed in the early 1980s. Before the offer, shares held by insiders were 36.3%.

Gothenburg brewery to close

Carlsberg Sweden, which was formed after the merger of brewers Falcon and Pripps, has started negotiations with trade unions to phase out production at the Gothenburg brewery (capacity 600,000 hl), a former Pripps brewery. Due to significant overcapacity in the industry, Carlsberg Sweden decided to close down one of its three breweries, which will leave it with breweries in Stockholm and Falkenberg only. The brewer hopes to complete negotiations by August at the latest so that production can be discontinued in April 2002. It is expected that 280 of Gothenburg’s 400 employees will lose their jobs. Of these 100 will be offered new jobs in Stockholm and Falkenberg.

Four-point election manifesto

In anticipation of the government’s plans to transfer responsibility for liquor licensing from magistrates to local authorities, Stuart Neame, Vice-Chairman of the Independent Family Brewers of Britain association, helped launch a four-point election manifesto. The proclamation calls upon all political parties for an 8p a pint tax reduction on beer, the retention of licensing control with magistrates, less red tape and help for cask ale. According to Kent brewer Neame, the number of brewers in the UK has fallen from 6,400 to 84 in the past 100 years.

Una birra, please

According to the British media, Scottish&Newcastle has cast desiring glances at Italy’s number 2 brewer Peroni in a takeover valued at £240m (US$341m). Both companies have already established ties. Last year, Scottish&Newcastle struck an agreement with Danone to buy its Kronenbourg beer business. When Peroni’s controlling families turned down the offer to buy back the 24% stake held by Danone, Scottish&Newcastle decided to make them an offer which they could not refuse.

Gothenburg brewery to close

Carlsberg Sweden, which was formed after the merger of brewers Falcon and Pripps, has started negotiations with trade unions to phase out production at the Gothenburg brewery (capacity 600,000 hl), a former Pripps brewery. Due to significant overcapacity in the industry, Carlsberg Sweden decided to close down one of its three breweries, which will leave it with breweries in Stockholm and Falkenberg only. The brewer hopes to complete negotiations by August at the latest so that production can be discontinued in April 2002. It is expected that 280 of Gothenburg’s 400 employees will lose their jobs. Of these 100 will be offered new jobs in Stockholm and Falkenberg.

Finalmente

The Spanish government has approved of Heineken’s proposed sale of two of its seven breweries and six brands to the Barcelona-based brewer Damm. Damm will take over the Madrid and Valencia breweries which have a combined capacity of 2.2m hl. The brands sold include Keler, Estrella del Sur, Victoria, Calatrava, Skol and Oro.
The sale of plants and brands had been the precondition for merging the El Aguila and Cruzcampo divisions. In 1999 Hein-eken acquired Cruzcampo from Diageo for more than €650m, attempting to merge it with brewer El Aguila. The merged company, Heineken Espana, would have had a share of 40% of the Spanish beer market - too much for the Spanish competition authorities. Rumour has it that in 1999 Damm was beaten by Heineken in the race for Cruzcampo..