Obolon (company)
Obolon Joint Stock Company () is a major Ukrainian producer of beverages: beer, low alcohol drinks (cocktails), soda drinks and locally extracted natural mineral water, as well as a major malt producer. Based in Kyiv, Obolon JSC has sites across Ukraine and employs several thousand people. Obolon's main plant in Kyiv is the largest brewing facility in Europe by installed capacity. As of 2008, that facility was Europe's largest single beer manufacturer in terms of physical volume. Obolon's plant in Khmelnytskyi Oblast is the largest malting facility in Europe by installed capacity. History. The company's  main brewery was built in 1980 according to designs made by Czech engineers, near an artesian well in Kyiv's Obolon district. Initially called Kyiv brewery #3, it acquired the name "Obolon" in 1986. In 1992, Obolon became the first privatized company in independent Ukraine and registered its corporate brand Obolon (). The shares of company stock were distributed among its employees. In 1993, Obolon changed its legal status to a closed joint-stock company (currently it's a "private joint stock company" under present legislation). In 1997, Obolon obtained a $40 million loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction  and Development, which the company used to significantly expand its production capacities. In 2009 Obolon obtained a further $50 million loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development towards financial stability and increased energy efficiency. Oleksandr Slobodian, the CEO and veteran of the company was also a national politician till the 2012 Ukrainian parliamentary election; he was a member of the Verkhovna Rada and has represented the conservative People's Movement of Ukraine for three consecutive sessions. Structure. Obolon has its main site in Kyiv and 8 facilities in Ukraine: Products and market share. Obolon sells beer under  six brands: Obolon, Obolon BeerMix, Magnat, hike premium beer, Zibert and Desant. Brands for its non-alcoholic products are Zhyvchyk, Prozora and Obolonska mineral waters, and the Jett line of energy drinks. The enterprise also produces low-alcohol beverages, such as kvass. Obolon bottles Bitburger beer under license. Obolon is the largest Ukrainian exporter of beer, accounting for 80% of Ukrainian beer exports. It was the first Ukrainian brewery to export to the United States. As of 2020, the company exported to 33 countries. It started exporting beer to China in 2011. Prior to 2014, most exports were to Russia . In September 2014, Russia banned imports of Ukrainian beer over alleged inaccuracies in the nutrition information displayed on the products' labels. Early summer 2015 the company signed a licensing agreement with the Moscow Brewing Company to make beer inside Russia under its label, hence to re-enter the Russian beer market. In March 2022, the company withdrew from this agreement following Russia’s actions in Ukraine. Quality standards. The Obolon Corporation has its own malting plant able to produce 120,000 tonnes of malt per year. The malting plant uses equipment from the German company Schmidt-Seeger. Obolon uses the malt  in its own products and exports it. Obolon is quality certified to international standards: ISO 9001:2001 (Quality Management Systems), ISO 22 000:2007 (Food Safety Management Systems), ISO 14 001:2006 (Environmental Management Systems), and OHSAS 18 001:2006 (Occupational Health and Safety Systems). Social investments. The company invests in projects aimed at reducing adverse environmental impact. Obolon is also actively involved in educational projects, charitable and cultural initiatives. It has contributed to restoration of churches and monasteries and to publishing of Ukrainian books. Sports patronage. Obolon has sponsored FC Obolon Kyiv since 1999. The company's CEO was an amateur footballer in  his youth. On 21 February 2013 FC Obolon Kyiv withdrew voluntary from the Ukrainian First League after Obolon CEO Slobodyan had refused to finance the club after goalkeeper Kostyantyn Makhnovskyi was sold by the club without his consent. In December 2012 Slobodian announced he would create a new team under the moniker "Obolon Brovar" ("Obolon Brewery"). This club started its residence in competitive football in the 2013–14 Ukrainian Second League season.