Czech Republic: Government to inspect Budvar Brewery

The Czech Government plans to inspect Budvar brewery in order to find out whether its contracts, including the recent distribution deal with long-time US rival Anheuser Busch, are advantageous, Deutsche Presse-Agentur reported April 2.

Trade Minister Martin Riman recently said that the deal between the two companies lowers Budvar's value.

The brewery's general manager, Jiri Bocek, countered that it will take at least until September before the contract's benefits could be assessed, the Hospodarske noviny daily reported.

The brewery, which according to Riman's recent remarks has a brand value of between 20 and 30 billion koruny (932 million and 1.4 billion dollars), has been involved in a worldwide legal battle with Anheuser Busch over the Budweiser trademark for almost a century.

In January the two rivals struck a deal in which Anheuser Busch, which is seen as an important bidder in any future privatization, is to distribute Budvar's lager across the United States under the Czechvar brand name.

The Czech centre-right government recently conceded to a possible future sale of Budweiser Budvar, the last major Czech brewery remaining in state hands, in order to raise budget revenues, earlier reports said.

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