The Carlsberg Group brewery, which announced its desire to exit the Russian market in March last year, released a statement that it had signed an agreement to sell its Russian business. In Russia, the Danish corporation owns eight plants of the Baltika company (in St. Petersburg, Voronezh, Novosibirsk and other cities), which produce beer under the brands Baltika, Arsenalnoe, Zatecky Gus and others (more than 55 brands in total).
“Separating the Russian business from the rest of the Carlsberg Group has been very difficult,” says the company.
We are talking about the revision of “about 150 work processes for business functions” and about investments in equipment for breweries and IT infrastructure in markets outside Russia “in the amount of more than 150 million Danish kroner”, i.e. about 1.8 billion rubles in Russian currency terms.
The official explanation also says that the deal is traditionally subject to approval by Russian regulators (mandatory steps include submitting and approving applications to the Russian Government Commission) and will require certain conditions to be met in various jurisdictions. ”
In this sense, “the timing of the final completion of the transaction remains uncertain” and in order for “the approval processes to proceed as smoothly as possible”, the company’s representatives do not intend to disclose any additional information and More complete. In particular, to whom exactly the assets will be sold.
Previously, several outlets expressed their assumptions: among the potential buyers mentioned were the soft drink maker Chernogolovka, the Israeli group CBC and the Belgian-Turkish company AB InBev Efes.
“The signing of the sale agreement for the Russian business is a very important milestone in the extremely complex separation and sale process. Although it was a lengthy process, it was important to us to find the best possible solution for all stakeholders, including our more than 8,000 employees in Russia. We now hope to get the necessary regulatory approvals,” says CEO Kees t’Hart.
The sale agreement will not affect expected earnings in 2023, as highlighted separately in the company. And until the final closing of the transaction, Carlsberg will continue its operating and commercial activities in the Russian Federation.
Author:
Ekaterina Alipova
Source: RB
I am a professional journalist and content creator with extensive experience writing for news websites. I currently work as an author at Gadget Onus, where I specialize in covering hot news topics. My written pieces have been published on some of the biggest media outlets around the world, including The Guardian and BBC News.
