Okocim announces plans for acquisition of Bitburger

The Okocim Brewery, which is 75% owned by Danish brewing giant Carlsberg, is expected to issue a statement within the next few days regarding its takeover of the German Bitburger group of breweries. The acquisition will bring under the control of Carlsberg two new breweries, Szczecin-based Bosman and Sierpc-based Kasztelan, in addition to Okocim. Carlsberg also has plans to acquire a 70% to 80% stake in the Piast Dolnoslaskie Brewery. According to an industry insider, only part of the transaction between Okocim and Bitburger will be in cash. The deal will also involve Okocim issuing shares for Bitburger. The unification of the four breweries should be finalized by the end of this year. The headquarters of the new company will be in Warsaw, with the supervisory board to comprise representatives of Bitburger, Carlsberg and Piast. According to Puls Biznesu, Carlsberg will need an estimated zl.500 million to carry out the merger of the four breweries, and bring them into line with the company's overall structure. After the merger is finalized, the Okocim, Kasztelan, Bosman and Piast grouping is expected to control 15.5% of the Polish beer market. (Puls Biznesu, p. 6) M.T.K.