AGRANA acquires 50% of SCO Studen´s sugar sales operations in the West Balkan region

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merger, acquisition and takeover

Wien (euro adhoc) - AGRANA, a leading Central and Eastern European
producer of sugar and starch, has acquired, subject to the approval
of the competent mergers and acquisitions authorities, 50% of the
shares in the sugar sales operations of the Studen Group | Vienna,
which markets white sugar products in Slovenia, Macedonia, Croatia,
Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina under the Agragold brand. Studen
has long been an export partner of AGRANA and currently sells around
130,000 tonnes of sugar in the countries of the West Balkan region.
Following the discontinuation of EU C sugar exports, supplies to the
West Balkan region were ensured through a refinery joint venture in
Brcko | Bosnia.

"The West Balkan region is an important sales market and an
interesting growth area for AGRANA. The region is also not subject to
any quotas imposed by the EU sugar market regime," comments AGRANA
CEO Johann Marihart on the Group´s latest expansion move. "We plan to
jointly continue increasing the market share of the AGRANA-Studen
Group in the West Balkan region in the period up to 2010," Marihart
adds.

Studen specialises in trading white and raw sugar as well as oil
seeds in South-Eastern Europe. Moreover, Studen also holds a 50%
stake in the new Studen-AGRANA raw sugar refinery in Brcko | Bosnia
Herzegovina which, with a production capacity of 150,000 tonnes of
white sugar per year, is due to enter operation in the coming week.
In March 2008, this Studen -AGRANA raw sugar refinery was awarded the
title of Best Foreign Investment 2007, in the category Greenfield
Investment, by the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency in Bosnia
Herzegovina.

AGRANA is the leading producer of sugar in Central and Eastern Europe
with operations in Austria, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia,
Romania and Bosnia Herzegovina, and a total of nine production
facilities in these countries. In Bulgaria, AGRANA operates a
packaging and sales joint venture with a local partner.

This press release in available online in German and English at
www.agrana.com.

end of announcement euro adhoc
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ots Originaltext: AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG
Im Internet recherchierbar: http://www.presseportal.de

Further inquiry note:

AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG

Mag. Maria Fally

Investor Relations

Tel.: +43-1-211 37-12905

e-mail:maria.fally@agrana.com

Mag. Ulrike Pichler

Public Relations

Tel.: +43-1-211 37-12084

e-mail:ulrike.pichler@agrana.com

Branche: Food
ISIN: AT0000603709
WKN: 779535
Index: WBI, ATX Prime
Börsen: Börse Berlin / Präsenzhandel
Börse Frankfurt / Präsenzhandel
Börse Stuttgart / Präsenzhandel
Wiener Börse AG / official market