Mexico: Grupo Modelo opens its eighth brewery in Mexico

AB InBev�s Grupo Modelo officially opened its eighth plant in Mexico on May 9, where it will produce 7 million hectolitres of beer annually, the Mexico News Daily reported.

The brewery, located in Hunucm�, Yucat�n, was initially intended to have a capacity of 5 million hectolitres, but that plan was changed earlier this year to bump that output with an expansion to the plant, said Mauricio Leyva of parent company AB InBev and manager of Grupo Modelo.

The 7-million-hectoliter capacity translates into 1.9 billion bottles of beer.

He also told the opening ceremony, attended by President Enrique Pe�a Nieto, that the facility had been completed in a record 12 months, observing that normally a plant of that size would require three years to complete.

The company invested 8.5 billion pesos in the project, which includes an adjacent factory to manufacture aluminum cans.

The investment created 3,500 jobs initially; another 600 have been added this year.

The one-million-square-meter plant will produce the brands Le�n, Montejo, Victoria, Le�n Negra and Corona Extra, among others.