Molson Coors Brewing Co. expects $75 million more in savings than the $175 million the company earlier said would flow from the merger last year of Adolph Coors and Canadian brewer Molson.
The brewer initially predicted the $3.4 billion merger would lead to savings of $175 million by 2007. The company has so far exceeded its savings goals for that period and expects to wring an additional $75 million in cost savings by 2008, Molson Coors chief executive Leo Kiely said Tuesday.
The savings will come from merging computer networks and reorganizing brewing and distribution systems, said Catherine Noonan, Molson Coors chief synergies officer.
The company, which has headquarters in Denver and Montreal, successfully integrated two major brewing companies during a challenging year, Kiely said.
Molson Coors Brewing Co.’s net income plunged nearly 60 percent in the last quarter of 2005 from the same period one year ago as costs rose, beer prices tumbled in some markets and the company took charges for closing a brewery.
“It was a tough and fundamentally transformational year for our company,” he said.
Kiely, who reaped a $474,000 profit on 15,000 stock options he sold at $65 per share last week, made the statements during a presentation to analysts in New York that was broadcast online.
The company’s stock closed at $65.49, up 12 cents.
Bloomberg News contributed to this report.
Staff writer Tom McGhee can be reached at 303-820-1671 or tmcghee@denverpost.com.
