Brau Union turnover up 20%

Brau Union, the leader of the local beer market, with a 27% share, will invest 65 million euros in the 2006 – 2008 period to upgrade its four local production facilities. Brau Union Romania, a member of the Dutch group Heineken, reported a 158.6 million euro turnover last year, 20% more than in 2004, but with the volume of sales down by 1.4%. “The restructuring of our brand portfolio generated a slight drop in volumes, but we posted larger revenues due to the rise in volumes for valuable brands sold,” stated Edwin Botterman, president of Brau Union Romania. Botterman specified that the Heineken brand witnessed a 68% growth in sales last year in Romania, the biggest growth in Central and Eastern Europe. Brau Union sold 3.5 million hectolitres of beer last year, in contrast to the 3.6 million hectolitres sold in 2004. The first half of the year witnessed a drop in sales particularly due to the restructuring of the brands portfolio, but also due to changes in the management team. The second half of the year saw sales grow by an average of 7.5% against the same period of 2004 due to the relaunch of Bucegi and to the existing brands consolidating their position. ZF