STOCKHOLM, August 16. /TASS/. The Danish company Carlsberg Group may take legal steps to protect its assets in Russia after the transfer of its stake in Baltika Breweries to the temporary management of the Russian Federal Agency for State Property Management. This is according the company’s financial report for the first six months of 2023.
" We’re assessing the situation and the legal consequences of this highly unexpected move and will seek to protect our assets and the value of the business," the document says.
A representative with the company stressed that they are acting "in compliance with local norms and rules in Russia."
Shares of foreigners in Baltika Breweries and Danone Russia dairy producer have been placed under temporary management of the Federal State Property Management Agency, according to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decree that was published on the official portal of legal documents on July 16.
In particular, the document extends the list of stakes in charter capitals of Russian legal entities to be transferred under temporary management. The list includes 98.56% in Baltika Breweries’ capital owned by Sweden’s Carlsberg Sverige Aktiebolag, 1.35% owned by Hoppy Union (part of the Carlsberg Group), and 0.09% owned by Carlsberg Deutschland GmbH (Carlsberg’s German subsidiary).
The Danish company clarifies that it retains ownership of the Baltika shares, but does not have any control or influence on the business management.
The Carlsberg report also states that the company's losses in Russia in the first six months of the year amounted to 404 million kroner ($59 million).