Australia: Global beverages Company, Foster's Group announced on February 15 it expects annual gross efficiency gains of $17 million from its expanded Yatala brewery in Queensland located between Brisbane and the Gold Coast.

"The expansion of Yatala represents the largest capital investment that Foster's has made anywhere in the world," said Foster's chief executive officer Trevor O'Hoy, who unveiled the expanded brewery on February 15. "I am pleased to say that the project has been completed on time and on budget and is expected to result in gross annual efficiency gains of $17 million per year."

Foster's said the $170 million expansion had doubled the size of the brewery from 230 million litres to 540 million litres, making it the equal largest brewery in Australia, with Foster's Abbotsford brewery in Victoria.

Yatala will make about one third of Australia's beer by volume. The Yatala expansion was announced in Foster's review of its Carlton & United Beverages (CUB) operations in April 2003. Most of the production from Foster's old Kent brewery in Sydney has been moved to Yatala.peFoster's shares were eight cents higher at $5.31 at 1458 AEDT today.

Foster's Group is a premium global multi-beverage company delivering a total portfolio of beer, wine, spirits, cider and non-alcohol beverages. Foster’s Group has three main divisions: Beringer Blass Wine Estates (BBWE), the world’s leading premium table wine group; Carlton and United Beverages (CUB), the Australian multi-beverage business; Foster’s Brewing International (FBI), the group’s international beer division, responsible for the global management and development of Foster’s Lager. Foster's makes and markets Australia's most famous beer, Foster's Lager, and produces premium wines such as Wolf Blass, Saltram, Beringer, Matua and Chateau St Jean. Foster's Carlton & United Breweries brews Australia's leading beer brands including Victoria Bitter, Crown Lager, Carlton Draught and Cascade Premium Lager.

Foster's Group has a total operating revenue of A$5.2 billion with operations across the globe in Australia, New Zealand, China, California, Italy, Chile, Vietnam, India and Fiji. As an Australian public company with a global focus and a business balance across 150 countries, Foster's emphasises excellence in manufacturing, technological innovation, the development of superior brands and working collaboratively with our customers and key suppliers to build brand equity. These attributes, combined with Foster's business philosophy of building long-term growth through this clear focus on brand equity, margin management and capital efficiency, are driving Foster's to generate increased shareholder value and maintain its status as a leading global investment choice.