Loss-making private breweries threatened with nationalisation

On April 10^th, at a meeting dedicated to the brewing industry development, President Lukashenko threatened to nationalise one of the Heineken plants. Following the threat to the brewery in Bobruisk, which is among the largest taxpayers in the Mogilev region, Belarus should anticipate further reduction in investment into Belarusian enterprises by foreign companies, increased pressure on private business, and more direct and indirect payments to the budget to be squeezed from various profitable enterprises. Meanwhile, revising the excise policy, which is the main reason why the situation in the brewery industry has deteriorated, (the excise tax on beer rose tenfold in the past 2.5 years) is not envisaged.