Slovakia: Heineken Slovensko plans to invest SKK 75 mln this year in the Gemer brewery in Slovakia, Gemer spokesman Stanislav Markus told the CTK news agency in February this year, according to Interfax. The company will put money into a storage facility, a new energy center, and a cooling plant. In 2003, Heineken invested SKK 42 mln in Gemer. The Slovak brewery produced 20,000 tonnes of malt last year, of which it exported 14,000 tonnes (a 40 % yr/yr increase).

Gemer expects exports to be even higher after the Slovak Republic enters the EU in May. Revenues rose 11 % in 2003, but Markus did not reveal the exact figure. The brewery, which employs a staff of 210, produced 364,000 hectoliters of beer last year. Heineken owns four of Slovakia's 11 breweries.

19 March, 2004