Bralirwa, also known by its French name Brasseries et Limonaderies du Rwanda, is the largest
brewer
Brewing is the production of beer by steeping a starch source (commonly cereal grains, the most popular of which is barley) in water and fermenting the resulting sweet liquid with yeast. It may be done in a brewery by a commercial brewer ...
and
soft beverage company in
Rwanda. Its shares of
stock are listed on the
Rwanda Stock Exchange
The Rwanda Stock Exchange Limited was incorporated on 7 October 2005 with the objective of carrying out stock market operations. The Stock Exchange was demutualized from the start as it was registered as a company limited by shares. The company ...
, where they trade under the symbol:BLRW.
As of December 2017, the company's total assets were valued at RWF:127.73 billion (approximately US$149.72 million), with shareholders' equity of RWF:35.7 billion (US$41.83 million).
History
The history of Bralirwa goes back to 1957. The management of the breweries of the
Congo and
Burundi, then under the management of Brasseries de Leopoldville (Brewery of Kinshasa), decided to build another brewery in the Eastern region. The city of
Gisenyi
Gisenyi, historically rendered as Kisenyi, is a city in Rubavu district in Rwanda's Western Province. Gisenyi is contiguous with Goma, the city across the border in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Overview
The city features a resort on t ...
, on the northern shores of
Lake Kivu
Lake Kivu is one of the African Great Lakes. It lies on the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, and is in the Albertine Rift, the western branch of the East African Rift. Lake Kivu empties into the Ruzizi River, whic ...
, was selected to house the new brewery. Gisenyi was selected for two reasons: (a) It was easily accessible, by water, land and air and (b) Lake Kivu has a large quantity of proven reserves of
methane
Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The relative abundance of methane on Ea ...
gas, a source of alternative energy. The brewery became operational in 1959 and began producing
Primus beer, the only brand produced until 1987. In 1987, a new premium local beer brand,
Mützig was introduced. In 1989, Bralirwa began making
Guinness under license.
In 1971, the
Heineken Group
Heineken N.V. () is a Dutch multinational brewing company, founded in 1864 by Gerard Adriaan Heineken in Amsterdam. , Heineken owns over 165 breweries in more than 70 countries. It produces 348 international, regional, local and speciality be ...
, a
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
brewing
conglomerate, acquired a 70 percent majority shareholding in Bralirwa. With the acquisition, Bralirwa greatly improved its brewing process. In 1974, Bralirwa diversified into the production of
soft drinks. A soft beverages plant was opened in
Kigali, Rwanda's capital and largest city. The brewer partnered with the
Coca-Cola Company
The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational beverage corporation founded in 1892, best known as the producer of Coca-Cola. The Coca-Cola Company also manufactures, sells, and markets other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups ...
, which allowed Bralirwa to widen the range of products manufactured.
As of 2018, Bralirwa is a regionally and internationally recognized brewer and soft beverage manufacturer with an expanding portfolio of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.
Ownership
The shares of
stock of the company are listed on the
Rwanda Stock Exchange
The Rwanda Stock Exchange Limited was incorporated on 7 October 2005 with the objective of carrying out stock market operations. The Stock Exchange was demutualized from the start as it was registered as a company limited by shares. The company ...
(RSE), where they trade under the symbol BLRW. The
Heineken Group
Heineken N.V. () is a Dutch multinational brewing company, founded in 1864 by Gerard Adriaan Heineken in Amsterdam. , Heineken owns over 165 breweries in more than 70 countries. It produces 348 international, regional, local and speciality be ...
owns 75 percent of the shares of the company. The remaining 25 percent are owned by individual and institutional investors. In December 2009, the
Government of Rwanda
The politics of Rwanda reflect Belgian and German civil law systems and customary law takes place in a framework of a semi-presidential republic, whereby the President of Rwanda is the head of state with significant executive power, with the Pr ...
successfully divested from the company by selling 5 percent shareholding directly to the Heineken Group and by listing the remaining 25 percent on the RSE, through an
initial public offering
An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investme ...
(IPO).
, the ownership of the company stock is as depicted in the table below:
Governance
As of December 2017, the members of the
board of directors of Bralirwa included the following individuals:
* Boudewijn Haarsma:
Chairman
* Victor Madiela:
Managing Director
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
* Chantal Mubarure: Non-Executive Director
* George Gakuba: Non-Executive Director
* John Bosco Sebabi: Non-Executive Director
* Jordi Borrut Bel: Non-Executive Director
* Hubert Eze: Non-Executive Director.
Operations
The Bralirwa brewery is located in
Gisenyi
Gisenyi, historically rendered as Kisenyi, is a city in Rubavu district in Rwanda's Western Province. Gisenyi is contiguous with Goma, the city across the border in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Overview
The city features a resort on t ...
, approximately , by road, west of
Kigali, Rwanda's capital city.
The administrative headquarters of the company are located in Kigali. Also located in Kigali is the Soft Beverages Plant, where Coca-Cola carbonated beverages of are manufactured under license. In May 2011, press reports indicated that the company was in the process of establishing a new soft drinks manufacturing line at the company's plant in Kicukiro, a suburb of Kigali, and upgrading its brewing plant in Gisenyi.
Brands
The brands manufactured by Bralirwa include:
Beers
* Primus
* Primus Citron
* Turbo King
* Huza
*
Mützig, a 5.5%
ABV
Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as ABV, abv, or alc/vol) is a standard measure of how much alcohol (ethanol) is contained in a given volume of an alcoholic beverage (expressed as a volume percent). It is defined as the number of millilitres (mL) o ...
lager; launched in 1987.
* Mützig Lite
*
Heineken
Heineken Lager Beer ( nl, Heineken Pilsener), or simply Heineken () is a pale lager beer with 5% alcohol by volume produced by the Dutch brewing company Heineken N.V. Heineken beer is sold in a green bottle with a red star.
History
On 15 Feb ...
*
Amstel
The Amstel () is a river in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. It flows from the Aarkanaal and Drecht in Nieuwveen northwards, passing Uithoorn, Amstelveen, and Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, to the IJ in Amsterdam. Annually, the r ...
*
Legend
A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess ...
Soft drinks
*
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlant ...
* Coca-Cola-Zero
*
Fanta
Fanta is an American-owned German brand of fruit-flavored carbonated soft drinks created by Coca-Cola Deutschland under the leadership of German businessman Max Keith. There are more than 200 flavors worldwide. Fanta originated in Germany as ...
: Orange, Citron, Fiesta, Pineapple
*
Sprite
*
Krest Tonic
*
Soda-Water
*
Cheetah-Energy-drink
See also
*
Republic of Rwanda
Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equato ...
*
Economy of Rwanda
The economy of Rwanda has undergone rapid industrialisation due to a successful governmental policy. It has a mixed economy. Since the early-2000s, Rwanda has witnessed an economic boom, which improved the living standards of many Rwandans. The ...
*
Western Province, Rwanda
Western Province ( rw, Intara y'Iburengerazuba; french: Province de l'Ouest; nl, West-provincie) is one of Rwanda's five provinces. It was created in early January 2006 as part of a government decentralization program that re-organized the coun ...
References
External links
HomepageHeineken Homepage
Photos
Bralirwa Brewery in Gisenyi
{{Economy of Rwanda
Drink companies of Rwanda
Companies listed on the Rwanda Stock Exchange
1957 establishments in Ruanda-Urundi
Heineken subsidiaries
Organisations based in Kigali
Coca-Cola bottlers
Food and drink companies established in 1957
Breweries of Africa