Heineken finds buyer for Russian businesses

Heineken has found a buyer for its Russian branch, the Dutch brewer announced with its quarterly figures on Wednesday. The company didn’t say who the buyer is, only that it's waiting for the Russian authorities to approve the sale. “If and when we have approval, we will share further details about the buyer and agreement,” Heineken said.

“We continue to make progress to transfer the ownership of our business in Russia, and an application has been submitted for approval to the authorities in the Russian Federation in line with local regulatory requirements. There is a limit to what we can say before this process is completed,” the company said.

The Dutch beer brewer faced a great deal of criticism this year about its Russian branch. Heineken announced last year that it would leave Russia due to the invasion of Ukraine but kept pushing new products on the Russian market.

In March, Heineken reiterated its commitment to leave Russia. According to the company, it had to keep the Russian branch attractive while looking for a buyer, which is why it kept launching new products in that market.

Heineken reported that it sold 3 percent less beer in the first quarter of 2023, but turnover increased 9 percent due to higher prices. Heineken increased its prices due to inflation. The brewer made 403 million euros in profit in the first three months of this year, about the same as the first quarter of 2022.