Aqua Holding

Aqua Holding is a joint venture between a private Russian investor who owns the wells of the Essentuki field and Kavminkurortresursy JSC, a large subsoil user in the Caucasian Mineral Waters, a company controlled by the Russian Federation.

Performance indicators

2024:35% increase in annual water exports to 750 million litres

Aqua Holding, a producer of mineral waters Essentuki No. 4, No. 17 and Narzan, increased exports by 35% to 750 million liters in 2024. TAdviser got acquainted with such data in January 2025.

The largest increase in exports was recorded in Belarus - 130%, Uzbekistan - 27%, Azerbaijan - 22% and Kazakhstan - 18%. Among non-CIS countries, the leading position is occupied by the Asian market.

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Фото: Freepik

Svyatoslav Vilk, General Director of Aqua Holding, emphasized the importance of the export direction for the company. The company annually renews the European certificate and was the first among mineral water producers to receive a halal certificate.

In 2024, the company supplied products to 19 countries. Essentuki and Narzan remain the main export brands, while Arkhyz and Gorji showed significant growth - 205% and 58%, respectively.

The company is actively developing supply chains to expand its international presence. Obtaining a halal certificate opens up new opportunities for the supply of products to the countries of the Arab world.

The availability of a European certificate allows the company to deliver to the countries of the European Union. The company seeks to establish mutually beneficial relations with foreign partners.

Aqua Holding demonstrates an increase in export indicators both in the volume of shipped products in liters and in the number of bottles sold. The company continues to expand the geography of supplies and the range of exported products.

The development of the export direction is one of the key business priorities of the company. Obtaining international quality certificates helps to enter new markets and strengthen positions in existing ones.

The company plans to further expand export supplies by developing new markets and increasing volumes in existing areas.^[1]

History

2024

AFK Sistema became the largest shareholder of the Holding Aqua group

AFK Sistema has completed the merger of large water producers, becoming the largest shareholder of the Holding Aqua group of companies, which produces Essentuki and Narzan. This was announced on June 10, 2024 by a representative of the holding.

As a result of the transaction, Aqua Investments LLC, which owns 100% of Aqua Holding LLC, received full control over the water producer Arkhyz VITA (Arkhyz Original LLC), acquired by AFK Sistema in June 2022 for 450 million rubles. Before the transaction, AFK Sistema was a creditor of the company and actually managed its business.

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Фото: Aqua Holding

As specified in Holding Aqua, the share of AFK Sistema in the authorized capital of Aqua Investments increased to 37.5%, which made it the largest shareholder of the company. The deal was closed on June 10, 2024 and received all the necessary approvals from the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS). According to investment banker Ilya Shumov, the cost of the entire Holding Aqua company can be up to 2-2.5 billion rubles.

According to RBC, Aqua Holding is the only producer of mineral water Essentuki No. 4 and No. 17, Narzan, as well as the Gorji brand. Now the brand "Arkhyz VITA" has been added to his portfolio. Svyatoslav Vilk, General Director of Aqua Holding, noted that the decision to transfer another water asset to the management of the holding was expected, given the long-term positive experience of the team with packaged water. Consolidation strengthened the holding's position as one of the leaders in the market.

Wilk said that after the acquisition of Arkhyz VITA, Sistema's stake in Aqua Investments increased to 37.5%, proportionally reducing the stakes of other shareholders. These changes have not yet been reflected in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities. At the moment, Sistema Telecom Assets owns 33.33%, Mikhail Mirzoev's Kazbek Invest LLC has the same stake, Valery Kovalev's Gisar JSC has 28.33%, and Nikita Shashkin's Ludani LLC has 5%. Shashkin's share can be sold to a third-party investor, relevant negotiations are already underway.^[2]

Withdrawal of the state from the company's shareholders

State-owned JSC Kavminkurortresursy has completed a deal to withdraw from the shareholders of Aqua Holding, mineral water producer Essentuki and Narzan. The share of the largest subsoil user was bought by the private shareholders of the holding. This was reported on June 3, 2024 by RBC.

Earlier, Kavminkurortresursy owned 25% of the shares of Aqua Holding, while the remaining 75% belonged to the private Aqua Investments LLC. As a result of the transaction, Aqua Investments became the full owners of Aqua Holding, having bought the remaining stake from the state enterprise. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

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Фото: Unsplash

Svyatoslav Vilk, General Director of Aqua Holding, noted that despite the changes in the composition of shareholders, the company plans to continue cooperation with Kavminkurortresursy. According to him, the companies together went through a difficult path to cleanse the market of counterfeit products and strengthened the position of the Essentuki and Narzan brands. He added that the companies intend to continue to develop legendary brands and popularize Kavminvod resorts.

Wilk stressed that the Aqua Holding, created in 2017, is a private-state project. Its main goal is to consolidate subsoil users with a state license to extract water from the wells of the Essentuki field. This was done to combat counterfeit products in the mineral water market and preserve well-known brands.^[3]

2018-2023

In 2018, Aqua Holding bought the Essentuki Mineral Water Plant from PepsiCo, becoming the largest producer and exporter of mineral water in southern Russia.

In 2023, AFK Sistema became the managing shareholder of the holding. In addition to the Essentuki brands No. 4 and No. 17, the holding's portfolio includes Narzan and Gorji. In 2023, the group's enterprises produced about 180 million bottles of water, which is 20% more than the previous year.

Notes