Romanian Bere Azuga Ceases Beer Prod, Lays Off 160 Employees

Romanian brewer Bere Azuga (BEGY.RO), bought early 2009 by SABMiller, will stop production at its plant in southern county of Prahova, laying off 160 employees, and will change its field of activity into real estate operations, a report of the company to the Bucharest Stock Exchange said Tuesday.

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The decisions were taken during the shareholders’ meeting June 15.

Bere Azuga said the employees will be laid off as of August 1.

Bere Azuga was bought earlier this year by Ursus Breweries, part of US-South African Group SABMiller. Bere Azuga’s former majority shareholder, Valerii Moraru, still owns a 21% stake through Rombas Trans International Company.

Ursus Breweries said in May it will suspend the beer production in Azuga and transfer it to the company's other factories.

Sources on the market said Ursus Breweries might rent mineral water bottling lines to mineral water bottling company Perla Covasnei where Bere Azuga owns a 33% stake.

Bere Azuga reported a steep decrease in its first quarter turnover, at 3.6 million lei (EUR1=RON4.2306), from RON28.5 million in the same period a year ago.

The company is listed on Bucharest bourse's RASDAQ market and has a share capital of RON13.4 million split up into 5.3 million shares with a nominal value of RON2.5 per share.

Bere Azuga shares were last traded June 12, when they closed at RON8.45, up 4.32% on the day. Thus, the company’s market value was at RON45.3 million.

Ursus Breweries owns in Romania four beer production units in western Timisoara, central Cluj-Napoca and Brasov and southern Buzau, where it currently employs 1,500 persons. The company has a total production capacity of 7.3 million hectoliters a year, not including the Azuga factory.

The main beer producers on the Romanian market are Ursus Breweries, Heineken Romania, InBev Romania and United Romanian Breweries Bereprod.

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