The Austrian leading brewery, BBAG, has denied reports in the press that it was close to sealing a deal, which would see Heineken take a stake in the company. "I cannot confirm it because simply it's not true. You have to ask them (if they are going to put in a bid), but I can say there is no bid from Heineken or anyone else currently on the table," said Michael Dickstein, BBAG spokesman. However, the news had driven the company's share price to an all time high on April 23.

Michael Dickstein did say there had been a lot of interest and some preliminary talks from Europe's top brewers since the Austrian beer maker announced it was seeking a strategic partner to make it the largest brewer in Eastern and Central Europe, according to press. “Dickstein went on to say that a partnership could take one of a number of forms including a joint platform for procurement and distribution or it could take the form of a minority stake, and it is also possible there could be a change of ownership, he said.”

25 April, 2003