| Mon 10 May 2004, 8:36 | | SABMiller Plc Acquires Aurora Brewery In Romania |
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SABMiller Plc Acquires Aurora Brewery In Romania
SABMILLER PLC
JSEALPHA CODE : SAB
ISSUER CODE SOSAB
ISIN CODE GB0004835483
London and Johannesburg, 10 May 2004. SABMiller plc ("SABMiller") announces that
it has agreed to acquire a controlling interest of 81.1% in the Romanian brewing
company Aurora S.A. ("Aurora"). The expected purchase of additional shares
prior to closing will increase SABMiller"s share holding to at least 90%. The
acquisition is conditional upon Romanian Competition Council approval and the
fulfilment of certain technical requirements.
Aurora has one brewery, located in the city of Brasov in central Romania, and a
national market share of 5.2%. The brewery has an annual capacity of 680,000
hectolitres and annual sales of 659,000 hectolitres. The value of the net
assets to be acquired is approximately US$16.2 million and the purchase
consideration implies a 2003 EBITDA multiple of less than 5.0 times.
Aurora brewery will become SABMiller"s fourth in Romania, joining its other
operations in Cluj-Napoca, Buzau, and Timisoara. Aurora"s main brands are
Ciucas and a recently launched PET brand Cerbul, both of which have a strong
regional presence. The acquisition offers the opportunity to grow these brands
via SABMiller"s existing distribution platform. Following the transaction
SABMiller will have a market share in Romania of approximately 20%, a strong
number two position in the market.
Graham Mackay, Chief Executive of SABMiller, commented: "This acquisition
complements our existing operations in Romania and strengthens our overall
position in central Europe. Aurora brings to SABMiller a strong local brand
portfolio, an excellent distribution platform in central Romania, and a quality
production site in a region with a rich brewing heritage. The acquisition builds
on our strategy of optimising and expanding our positions in developing markets
and we anticipate brand, procurement and distribution benefits from integrating
Aurora with our existing Romanian operations."
Ends
Notes to Editors
SABMiller plc is one of the world"s largest brewers, with 2002/03 lager volumes
in excess of 115 million hectolitres. It has a brewing presence in over 40
countries across four continents and a portfolio of strong brands and leading
market shares in many of the countries in which it has brewing operations.
Outside the USA, SABMiller plc is one of the largest bottlers of Coca-Cola
products in the world.
In the year ended 31 March 2003, the group generated US$770 million pre-tax
profit from a turnover of US$9,112 million. SABMiller plc is listed on the
London and Johannesburg stock exchanges.
SABMiller has been operating in Romania since 1996 and currently runs three
breweries with a total capacity of 2.1 million hectolitres, employing
approximately 1,100 people. SABMiller"s existing operations are located in Cluj
Napoca, Buzau, and Timisoara, the latter acquired in 2001. These operations had
combined output of 1.9 million hectolitres in calendar year 2003, representing
15.3% of the market. SABMiller"s brands in Romania include Ursus Premium,
Timisoreana Lux, Miller Genuine Draft and Pilsner Urquell. The location of
Aurora is in central Romania (330km from Cluj-Napoca, 180km from Buzau and 450km
from Timisoara). The Romanian beer market is approximately 12.8 million
hectolitres and grew by 12% in 2003.
This announcement is available on the company website. www.sabmiller.com
Contacts:
Sue Clark
Director of Corporate Affairs Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7659 0184
SABMiller plc Mob: + 44 (0) 7850 285471
Gary Leibowitz
Vice President, Investor Relations Tel: +44 (0) 20 7659 0119
SABMiller plc Mob: +44 (0) 7717 428540
Nigel Fairbrass
Head of Corporate Communications (Finance) Tel: +44 (0) 20 7659 0105
SABMiller plc Mob: +44 (0) 7799 894265
