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Heineken joint venture APB acquires Aurangabad Breweries, India


WEBWIRE

Amsterdam, 2 May 2006 - Heineken N.V. announced today that Asia Pacific Breweries (APB) has acquired an initial 76% stake in Aurangabad Breweries Ltd (AUBL) in India. Heineken holds approximately 42% stake in Singapore listed APB.

The deal includes an entitlement for APB to increase its stake in AUBL to 100% by the end of 2008. The total transaction value is approximately USD 18 million and debt free.

AUBL operates 2 breweries in the states of Maharashtra and Goa, with a combined annual production capacity of approximately 250,000 hectolitres. AUBL brews and markets local lager beer brands including Cannon-10000 and Arlem.

Marc Bolland, Member of the Executive Board and Chief Operating Officer of Heineken N.V. commented: “South Asia is an attractive emerging market with favourable demographics. With this acquisition, APB is expanding its brewery network to the Indian beer market, which is currently growing by more than 7% annually. We will further build on AUBL’s strong existing market positions in Maharashtra and Goa and we see future earnings potential for the Heineken brand by leveraging the strength of AUBL’s distribution system.”

The total beer market in India is approximately 8 million hectolitres per annum. This translates into a per capita consumption of less than 1 litre. With almost 55% of the population in the 21-59 year age group, the potential for growth in beer consumption remains high. With 15-20% of the overall Indian beer consumption, the affluent and populous Maharashtra state represents amongst the highest in India.



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