The license agreement provides for production of the beer varieties Baltika No 3 Classicheskoye and Baltika No 9 Extra. The first shipment of Baltika beer made at the Sarbast Plus facility will be brought to market before the end of 2008.

In the time between the signing of the agreement and the launch of production, the company maintained that it will have to evaluate the volume of investment needed to further equip the joint venture Sarbast Plus, as well as discuss questions of joint distribution of the varieties produced in Uzbekistan.

Anton Artemiev, president of Baltika Breweries, said: "Last week we signed a contract to buy a brewery in Azerbaijan, and today we reached agreement with respect to licensed production in Uzbekistan. Our choice is not accidental: the Sarbast Plus company has new and up-to-date production and can meet world standards of brewing."