Negotiations of the Obolon Corporation and Bilderzhharchoprom Concern resulted in signing a bilateral agreement of beer supplies to Belorussia.
According to Victoria Alimova, Vice President of Development of Obolon Corporation, Obolon was forced to sign the contract with the Belorussian party as we had to take all the steps possible to avoid losing the market completely. Transfer prices for Belorussian counterparts will therefore be increased, and a licensing program with Brestsky Pyvo JSC will be developed. Nonetheless, we consider the imposition of licensing for Ukrainian beer as a discriminatory method of market regulation'.
It should also be noted that we have not yet renewed the delivery of beer. Our official importers have just submitted documents to acquire license and, in some regions, our beer will be unavailable for a period of time', stated Victoria Alimova.
Commenting on the outcome of negotiations, Victoria Alimova also stated that an agreement was reached with regard to an increase of 49% in the transfer price for PET-bottled beer, instead of 65% as previously suggested by the Belorussian party. Even though such a price would make Ukrainian beer non-competitive on the Belorussian market, the sale price would increase significantly.