“WE CONSISTENTLY BENCHMARK LEADING GLOBAL BEER INDUSTRIES, ADAPTING OUR EXTENSIVE INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE UZBEK CONSUMER”

UZCARLSBERG HAS BEEN A KEY PLAYER IN UZBEKISTAN’S BEVERAGE INDUSTRY FOR YEARS. CAN YOU SHARE INSIGHTS INTO THE COMPANY’S JOURNEY, KEY MILESTONES, AND THE FACTORS BEHIND ITS SUSTAINED SUCCESS IN THE COUNTRY?

UzCarlsberg is the leading international beer company in Uzbekistan across various parameters. In recent years, the company has introduced great innovation to the market by focusing on international standards of product quality, packaging, and taste.

We consistently benchmark leading global beer industries across different regions, adapting our extensive international experience to meet the needs of the Uzbek consumer. This is supported by regular market research and product adaptation led by our experienced team of technologists and backed by an international support system.

As a brewery that produces international brands under license, we receive ongoing global support and share this expertise through the beer we produce.

Our products are inspected monthly in international laboratories to ensure top quality. We are committed to excellence in every step of our process—from sourcing raw materials and packaging to final production. Significant investments are made in training our brewery and field teams to maintain high performance and service standards.

We operate international-standard pouring and cooling equipment across thousands of sales points and have teams that service and sanitize draft beer equipments to ensure product safety. The company has a long-standing and leading local brand, Sarbast, which has been winning international taste tests, with an emphasis on Germany, for years, and we test it in laboratories outside Uzbekistan every month to ensure a high level of quality.

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CAN YOU ELABORATE ON YOUR INVESTMENT PLAN AND WHAT NEW DEVELOPMENTS ARE EXPECTED IN THE COMING YEARS?

The company has allocated over $60 million in recent years, upgrading beer production and brewing systems, making significant investments in beer sales and cooling equipment, and product quality control measures to meet international standards. Significant resources has also been invested in the field of safety and environmental responsibility, for example: an American-standard fire extinguishing system was installed in the brewery, fast European production lines.

Also, being first in beer industry of Uzbekistan, we do prioritize the process of adapting the brewery to the standards of the product digital marking system that was recently introduced. At the territory of UzCarlsberg Brewery, we are meeting our customers through an international-standard Visitor Center, where they can view the production process, observing high standards, learn more about the process of beer production via free lectures in the areas of quality and responsible consumption of beer

HOW DOES THE COMPANY VIEW ITS SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC RESPONSIBILITIES, AND WHAT IMPACT DOES IT AIM TO CREATE BEYOND ITS CORE BUSINESS?

The company is a responsible taxpayer, contributing several hundred billion soums annually to the state treasury. We are proud to play a significant role in the country’s economic growth and to contribute actively to its development. Since 2017, the economic reforms initiated by the President of Uzbekistan, supported by the government, have enabled us to invest heavily in our growth.

We have benefited from the professional support of the Ministry of Investment and Trade, as well as other authorities, and we believe this environment is key to attracting further investments across various sectors.

From the very beginning of our operations in Uzbekistan, as an international company that values legal compliance and regulatory frameworks, we have always found the authorities receptive and responsive to our needs. Ongoing reforms related to exports, transportation, and corporate responsibility reinforce our confidence that Uzbekistan is a growing, investment-friendly economy that encourages long-term engagement.

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HOW IS UZCARLSBERG LEADING IN SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION, ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY, AND RESOURCE EFFICIENCY IN UZBEKISTAN?

As a subsidiary of a large international concern, we adopt practices that promote resource conservation and reduce environmental impact. These include minimizing water use, employing reusable bottles, operating low-emission refrigerators, and reusing gas collected during the brewing process.

All production waste is sorted and sent for recycling, and emissions are systematically monitored. We value the natural resources around us. In 2024 alone, 260 perennial trees were planted in the brewery itself, supported by a drip irrigation system.

Our team is actively upgrading infrastructure with energy-saving technologies and air purification systems. In 2024, we built a recovery station to capture and reuse carbon dioxide generated during brewing, preventing its release into the atmosphere.

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Further projects are underway to reduce electricity and water consumption per production unit and reuse flushing water from cleaning processes. A resource conservation audit, supported by the EBRD, has been successfully completed.

All new commercial equipment is Class A energy-efficient and uses safe refrigerants. Significant efforts are also being made to reduce polyethylene usage, with 25–30% of packaging volume now reused.

WHAT IS THE COMPANY’S LONG-TERM VISION FOR ITS ROLE IN UZBEKISTAN’S BEVERAGE INDUSTRY?

We are proud that our investment horizon spans decades. In our industry, long-term investment is essential before achieving significant profits. We remain committed to growth and continued investment, and we believe our consumers will keep enjoying our high-quality products and the new opportunities arising—particularly with Uzbekistan’s anticipated accession to the WTO.

Looking ahead, we plan to expand export operations, establish additional production facilities, and strengthen our relationships with consumers and partners. As the owners of a leading local brand that consistently wins European quality awards, we take pride in the fact that tourists visiting Uzbekistan recognize and share their appreciation for Uzbek quality—often highlighting Sarbast on social media as a symbol of local excellence. We will continue to seek opportunities to support the country’s tourism sector in all areas relevant to our business.

WHAT MESSAGE DO YOU HAVE FOR INTERNATIONAL INVESTORS IN UZBEKISTAN?

From our perspective, after years of activity in the Uzbek market and growth alongside ongoing reforms, I can confidently say that we are very satisfied with the investment climate in Uzbekistan. Our belief in the path set by the President of the Republic, along with the prompt execution of decisions, openness, and partnership with the Ministry of Investments and other authorities, gives us strong confidence in the future growth of our category and the broader market.

As a result, we fully intend to continue identifying new opportunities for expansion across other sectors in the country. We hope to continue enjoying the fruits of our investments—offering our consumers high-quality products every time they open our refrigerators, and creating many more years of encounters filled with service, satisfaction, and mutual benefit for our retailers and distributors.

The shared success of the country, society, and consumers will remain our ultimate goal, and we are committed to doing everything necessary to achieve it for the benefit of all.

WHAT ABOUT GENDER EQUALITY?

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The company itself has created more than 350 job positions. Taking into account the personnel hired by our partners to run the joint business, this figure is several times higher. We are proud and value all employees in our company, and for sure no matter gender but professionalism, and experience of the person.

At the same time, we are actively supporting young talents, giving them professional opportunity to learn during open lectures, student forums and medium term internship programs. Talking about gender, 80% of our employees are men and 20% are women. At first glance, it may seem that 20% is a small figure, but if you look at the overall breakdown across all departments, we can see that in some departments, like Accounting, HR, Laboratory, Finance, and also in Top Management team, female part of the teams is dominating significantly.