India: Carlsberg accelerates brewing in India

Carlsberg's joint venture South Asia Breweries accelerates brewing in India, according to Carlsberg’s press release, May 14. This has been made possible after the company has acquired an existing brewery in the state of Himachal Pradesh north of the Indian capital of New Delhi,

Production at the brewery, which has a capacity of 150,000 hl and with possibilities for significant expansion of capacity, will be up and running shortly, whereas the construction of the greenfield brewery with an initial capacity of 450,000 hl in the state of Rajasthan south west of Delhi will be completed in Q1 2008.

The brewery in Himachal Pradesh is ten years old. It is one of the very few breweries in North India with brewing equipment as per European standards, and the brewery has a unique location due to its close proximity to most of the beer consuming north Indian states. New Delhi is at a distance of only 280 km from the brewery.

Portfolio at the brewery will include a number of brands from The Carlsberg Group.
Both the brewery in Himachal Pradesh and in Rajasthan will be managed from South Asia Breweries' head office in New Delhi.

About South Asia Breweries:

The company was established November 2006. Carlsberg holds 45% of the shares, Industrialization Fund for Developing Countries ("IFU") holds 10%, and the remaining 45% is owned by a group of investors, lead by Carlsberg's partner in Sri Lanka, The Lion Brewery Ceylon Ltd.

Carlsberg is one of the leading brewing groups in the world, with a large portfolio of beer and soft drinks brands. Its flagship brand – Carlsberg – is one of the fastest-growing and best-known beer brands in the world. More than 30,000 people work for Carlsberg at 92 local production sites in 48 countries, and its products are sold in more than 150 markets. In 2006 Carlsberg sold more than 100 million hectolitres of beer, which is about 83 million bottles of beer a day.

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