Grupo Modelo today announced it will invest 14 billion pesos (close to US $756 million) in a new brewery and bottling plant in Hidalgo, its eighth in Mexico.
The new facility, to be located in the municipality of Apan, will have an initial capacity of 1.2 billion liters of beer annually, which will make the state Mexico’s largest beer exporter. It will also boost the company’s overall capacity by 18%.
The new plant, which will produce both Corona and Victoria beers, will be the second largest in the world in terms of production volume, second only to Grupo Modelo’s Zacatecas brewery.
CEO Mauricio Leyva said the new plant is a sign of the level of interest and commitment by parent company Anheuser-Busch InBev in Mexico, given the success and increasing demand of Mexican beer brands abroad.
Grupo Modelo’s flagship brand Corona is the only globally consumed beer that is produced 100% in its country of origin.
“The thing about Mexico is the power of its brands, and their consistency and positioning [have created] international interest, where people are eager to pay some more for a product made with Mexican ingredients and talent,” continued Leyva.
Corona’s growth in the domestic market was double-digit last year, while abroad it was 14%. Of the three global brands sold by AB InBev — Corona, Stella Artois and Budweiser — Corona has grown the most over the last five years.
According to market research firm Euromonitor International, Grupo Modelo dominated the domestic market last year with a 57% share.
The brewery’s next largest competitor is Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma Heineken, with 40% of the market.
Euromonitor also said the beer industry in Mexico is worth close to 365.5 billion pesos, or about $19.2 billion.
Comments