Amber Latvijas Balzams in red amid volume slide
Amber Latvijas Balzams moved into the red in the first quarter amid a slump in volumes.
The company, which is central to the financial problems at the wider Amber Beverage Group, booked a first-quarter loss of €1.4m ($1.6m) for the opening three months of 2026, compared to a profit of €800,000 a year earlier.
Amber Latvijas Balzams posted a 29.6% fall in turnover to €11.1m on the back of a more than 36% drop in volumes.
The publicly listed group – in which Amber Beverage Group owns a majority stake – pointed to “strategic decisions made by Stoli Group regarding the development of the Stoli brand and supply chain optimisation, which had a short-term impact on order volumes”.
Stoli is owned by SPI Group Holding, itself a “major” shareholder in Amber Beverage Group.
In 2025, Amber Latvijas Balzams’ revenue fell 4.8% to €74.5m, while net profit dropped 39% to €2.5m.
In February, a court in Riga approved a move to start “legal protection proceedings” for Amber Latvijas Balzams to enable the company restructure its liabilities as cash-flow pressures hit the business. The move followed “external challenges” that included developments involving Stoli’s operations in the US, Amber Latvijas Balzams’ largest customer. That affected Amber Latvijas Balzams’ ability to pay creditors.
The court had set a deadline of 5 June for the approval of an “action plan” under the protection proceedings. The deadline has been extended to 5 October.
Meanwhile, in April, Amber Beverage Group, which owns just under 90% of Amber Latvijas Balzams, opened “judicial reorganisation proceedings”, securing a moratorium on its debt obligations.
The moratorium, granted by a court in Luxembourg, is effective until 24 August and could also be extended.
The move followed a formal event of default in February, sparked by the failure of Amber Beverage Group to repay bondholders within a required 20-business-day window.
Amber Latvijas Balzams manufactures more than 100 Amber Beverage Group brands.
The company has two two plants in Riga making products including spirits and sparkling wine.
Amber Beverage Group is set to publish its own first-quarter results at the end of July.
"Amber Latvijas Balzams in red amid volume slide" was originally created and published by Just Drinks, a GlobalData owned brand.
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