Heineken N.V. has announced that it has completed all transactions to form the long-term, strategic partnership with China Resources Enterprise (CRE) and China Resources Beer (CR Beer) for Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau.
The deal was originally announced in November 2018, when CRE also became a shareholder in Heineken.
As a result, Heineken will become CRE's 40% minority partner in CRH Limited, the company that controls CR Beer.
Chinese Beer Market
At the time the drinks company said that it was looking to significantly expand the availability of the Heineken brand across the globe.
CR Beer is a major player in China, making it a market leader in one of the worlds largest beer markets.
As part of the strategic partnership, Heineken China's current operations will be combined with CR Beer's operations, and Heineken will license the Heineken brand in China to CR Beer on a long-term basis.
The group believes that the profitability of the Chinese beer market will improve significantly, driven by premiumisation, demand for international beer brands and cost optimisation.
It will also aim to support and accelerate the international growth of CR Beer's Snow brand.
© 2019 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Aidan O’Sullivan. Click sign-up to subscribe to Checkout.
