LQU Quilmes Ind Quinsa

LUXEMBOURG, Aug. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Quilmes Industrial (Quinsa) S.A. (NYSE:LQU) (the "Company") announced that, in connection with the formation of the audit committee of four independent directors in compliance with the rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and the listing standards of the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE"), the Company and its controlling shareholders, Beverage Associates (BAC) Corp. ("BAC") and Companhia de Bebidas das Americas - AmBev ("AmBev"), have amended the existing shareholders agreement among Quinsa, BAC and AmBev. The amendments modify the quorum and voting requirements for meetings of the board of directors of the Company to reflect the inclusion of the four independent directors while maintaining the equal voting power of the other directors proposed for appointment by BAC and AmBev respectively, the joint control of all board decisions by such directors and the veto rights of these respective directors included in the original shareholders agreement, and reflects the establishment of the audit committee in compliance with the rules and regulations of the SEC and NYSE. A copy of the agreement has been submitted to the SEC (on a Form 6-K), the Luxembourg Stock Exchange and the Commission for the Supervision of the Financial Sector in Luxembourg. ABOUT QUINSA Quinsa is a Luxembourg-based holding company that currently controls 87.63 percent of Quilmes International (Bermuda) Ltd. ("QIB"). Quinsa, through QIB, controls beverage and malting businesses in five Latin American countries. Its beer brands are strong market leaders in Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay, and have a presence in Chile. Further, pursuant to the Company's strategic alliance with AmBev, it has entered into license and distribution agreements to produce and sell the AmBev brands in Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay. Similarly, under the agreements, AmBev may produce and distribute Quinsa's brands in Brazil. The Company also has bottling and franchise agreements with PepsiCo, and thus accounts for 100% of PepsiCo beverage sales in Uruguay and more than 80% of PepsiCo beverage sales in Argentina. Quinsa's Class A and Class B shares are listed on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (Reuters codes: QUIN.LU and QUINp.LU). Quinsa's American Depository Shares, representing the Company's Class B shares, are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE:LQU). Quinsa's web address: http://www.quinsa.com/ or http://www.quinsa.com.ar/ Forward-Looking Statements Except for historical information contained herein, the statements in this release are forward-looking and made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause the Company's actual results in future periods to differ materially from forecasted results. Those risks include, among others, changes in customers' demand for the Company's products, changes in raw material, labor, equipment and transportation costs and availability, changes in customer orders, pricing actions by the Company's competitors, disagreements between the Company's controlling shareholders and general changes in economic conditions. Risks associated with forward-looking statements are more fully described in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company assumes no duty to update its outlook statements as of any future date. CONTACT: Francis Cressall Quilmes Industrial (Quinsa) S.A. +5411-4349-1846 DATASOURCE: Quilmes Industrial (Quinsa) S.A. CONTACT: Francis Cressall, Quilmes Industrial (Quinsa) S.A., +1-5411-4349-1846

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