Russia: Efes bought the rights for the distribution of Bavaria brand in Russia from Heineken

Efes brewing company based in Turkey has acquired the rights for the distribution of the beer brand of Bavaria in Russia from Dutch brewery Heineken, Kommersant news agency communicated on April 18. Bavaria N.V. and Efes are expected to sign the contract soon. Having bought two Krasny Vostok breweries, Efes badly needs new brands to use its production facilities and is likely to keep on buying new rights.

Efes presented the new brand to its Russian distributors in Malta last week. Bavaria N.V. and Efes are to sign the contract in late April, according to the information Kommersant obtained. Efes, however, would not confirm the reports yesterday. The financial aspect of the deal is not disclosed either.

Heineken has held rights for the brand of Bavaria in Russia through the PIT brewery. Obviously, the Dutch concern decided not to develop the potential rival for Heineken, its major brand.

Analysts note that the production of new brands now tops the agenda at Efes. This is the only way for the company to fill up it production facilities. The Turkish concern bought two breweries of Krasny Vostok in January. The concern currently has production facilities with the annual capacity of 100 million decaliters of beer but a great part of the facilities stand idle.