AB InBev unit Grupo Modelo to build $755 new brewery in Mexico

Mexican beer maker Grupo Modelo, a unit of global beer giant Anheuser-Busch InBev, has said that it plans to pay 14 billion Mexican pesos (US$755 million) to build a brewing and bottling plant in the city of Alpan, Hidalgo. 

With operations expected to begin in March 2019, the brewery will have the annual capacity to produce about 320 million gallons of beer every year or about nine million bottles of beer a day, according to Grupo Modelo Chief Executive Mauricio Leyva. 

SEE ALSO:

• AB InBev in space: Why the first beer on Mars could be a Budweiser
• AB InBev names Michel Doukeris as new US boss
• A quarter of the UK’s craft beer is now sold in cans

The Mexican beer producer, which owns brands such as Corona, Pacifico, and Victoria, will create what is thought to be the second largest brewery in the world in terms of production and volume.

The investment will generate around 3,000 jobs during the construction phase as well as “more than 1,200 direct permanent jobs during the operation phase,” the company said. 

"Through this investment, Grupo Modelo reiterates its commitment and long-term vision for Mexico," said Mauricio Leyva, president of AB InBev's Middle Americas Zone & CEO of Grupo Modelo.

"It fills us with pride to say we will continue brewing all of Grupo Modelo's beers here in Mexico.

"We are very happy to invest and to grow in the state of Hidalgo."

Founded in 1925, Grupo Modelo has 16 brands and a presence spanning 180 countries. 

Levya said that the expansion comes as a response to increasing domestic and export demand for Corona and “the entire Mexican portfolio.” 

Anheuser-Busch InBev paid US$20.1bn to take full control of Grupo Modelo in June 2012. 

Last week, AB InBev also announced plans to build a US$250 million brewery in Nigeria.