Colombia: The president of Colombian brewer Grupo Empresarial Bavaria reiterated Friday, January 21, that the company isn't interested in selling its beer business, noting that South America's second-largest brewer prefers to be on the buying side of takeovers, according to Associated Press.

On Thursday, media reports said a handful of foreign companies - including South Africa's SABMiller, InBev of Belgium and Heineken of the Netherlands - are in preliminary talks to acquire Bavaria in a deal that analysts say could be worth US$9 billion (euro6.87 billion). "In a distant future, there could be (sale) conversations, but I can't even imagine how distant that future is," said Bavaria President Ricardo Obregon in his first comments to the media since Thursday's surprising news.

Obregon branded the media reports as "pure speculation," adding that Bavaria wants to keep purchasing beverage companies in the region. Bavaria began a costly expansion in 2001 with the acquisition of Cerveceria Nacional in Panama.

The US$9 billion (euro6.87 billion) price tag - considered the upper end of analysts' valuation of the company - also came as a surprise to the Bavaria chief. "(International reports) are citing a spectacular value for our company," Obregon told local Caracol radio, noting that a fair price would more likely be in the $7 billion (euro5.34 billion) range.

Bavaria dominates the Colombian market and has controlling stakes in leading brewers in Ecuador, Panama and Peru. It's considered among the last good opportunities for large foreign players to tap into the Latin American beverages market. Local analysts also say it's possible New York resident Julio Mario Santo Domingo, Bavaria's main shareholder and Colombia's richest man, is interested in selling.

Industry experts believe it's just a matter of time before Bavaria is sold, as the beverages sector has become increasingly competitive amid the recent wave of consolidation. For potential bidders such as SABMiller, which doesn't have a large presence in South America, buying Bavaria would mean a footprint in a large and expanding market.

Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has worked tirelessly and with considerable success to find an end to a violent conflict with Marxist rebels that has severely hurt the economy. If a multinational firm buys Bavaria, the most recognized corporation within Colombia and one of its largest private employers, observers say it could create a wave of much-needed foreign investment.

But in Internet chat rooms and on the radio, the first reaction of most Colombians has been to reject the sale of Bavaria, which was founded in this Andean nation more than a century ago by German immigrants. "They can do what they want with their money, but with a company like Bavaria, which is practically part of our national and cultural heritage, it shouldn't belong to a foreign company," said an unsigned message posted on the chat room of the country's main newspaper, El Tiempo.

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