Central and Eastern Europe
Revenue
Operating profit
Heineken volume
in premium segment
Regional beer volume
Central and Eastern Europe is Heineken's largest region by volume
and has huge growth potential. Many markets are benefiting from further
integration within the EU and the Heineken brand is benefiting from the
increased popularity of premium beers.
25.
The Heineken story in most
of the Central and Eastern
European region is one of growth.
We continue to strengthen our
brands in key markets such as
Tussia and Poland. We work hard
o cut costs in more mature markets
such as Germany and Greece."
Regional beer volume
In millions of hectolitres
2001 I
2002 I
2003 I
2004 I
2005 I
19.9
24.0
28.7
42.6
45.5
Nico Nusmeier, President Heineken Central and Eastern Europe
As a result of the new management structure and
the creation of operating regions, this region now
also includes Germany and Greece, which were
previously reported in Western Europe.
Revenues in the region grew on the back of higher
prices, a positive foreign exchange contribution and
the consolidation of recent acquisitions in Russia and
Germany. The positive outlook on beer consumption
in the region is a direct result of the economic growth
in Central and Eastern Europe, coupled with a clear
shift from vodka and hard liquors in favour of beers.
Heineken's successful work on brand building
further boosts those positive external trends.
The region's EBIT was equally satisfactory, growing
16 percent, reaching a margin of 11 percent, mainly
due to a successful pricing policy and continuous
focus on cost control. Volumes fell slightly due to
the challenging environments in some countries,
such as Austria, Slovakia, Romania and Bulgaria.
The beer market in these countries was also hurt
by bad summer weather and in some cases by
significant rises in excise duties. On the other hand,
volumes of the Heineken brand grew strongly,
rising 6.2 percent to 1.9 million hectolitres.
€2.8 billion
€290 million
1.9 million hectolitres
45.5 million hectolitres
Heineken N.V.-Annual Report2005
