Johannesburg, July 1: South African Breweries Ltd said on that it was planning a further expansion into its home continent with new ventures projected in Angola, Ethiopia and Ghana.

The project at the most advanced stage is an agreement to take over a brewery in the southern Angolan town of Lubango which the group used to own before it was nationalised in the 1970s.

SAB also plans a franchise deal with Coca-Cola in the country. The company already has joint ventures with the soft drinks giant in South Africa, Swaziland, Lesotho and Botswana.

"We just need to work out with (the Angolan) government if there are suitable local partners or if government wants to have a share (in the Coke bottling plant)," Andre Parker, managing director of SAB's international beer business, told Reuters.

Parker said SAB was concerned at a recent deterioration in political stability in Angola, which is seeking to secure lasting peace after a 19-year post-independence civil war.

But he added the fundamentals of a political settlement were there and should pave the way for investment. "We are a bit concerned...but the fundamentals still seem in place," he said.

Another venture that the firm is mulling is in East Africa, where a possible $40 million brewery is on the cards on a site near the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.

The Ethiopian government is currently reviewing the proposals, which will also involve a local partner.

SAB has expanded rapidly from South Africa, where it dominates the local drinks industry. It already has operations in Mozambique, Zambia, Tanzania and Kenya.

Parker said the group was also looking at making its first move into West Africa, with Ghana having been chosen as the launch pad for any possible expansion.

"Ghana is on top of our list," he said.

Parker added that a move into Ghana was still at the evaluation phase but that firmer plans should emerge within the next three months."We are almost there in concept form," he said.

Ghana could be used as a beach head to move into the vast market of Nigeria but Parker said that Nigeria's current troubled economic and political environment meant that a move into France

Parker said there were language and cultural problems involved in a move away from its more natural markets of former British colonies but the firm's experience in Portuguese-speaking Mozambique would help pave the way."The problems are not ones we can't solve. We have shown that with Mozambique," he said.Aside from its network of African operations, SAB has also moved into central and eastern Europe, with deals in Hungary, Poland and Romania, and the quickly emerging market of China.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.