E-Malt.com News article: 1148

Czech Brewery Plzensky Prazdroj, a unit of SABMiller plc plans to increase beer production to 5 million hl by 2006 from current 2 million hl. The first stage of its expansion will cost 300 million crowns.

Plzensky Prazdroj began the reconstruction and expansion of the Pilsner Urquell brewhouse in the Plzen brewery. The company has decided to make this investment in relation to its strategic objective, which is to increase the Pilsner Urquell beer production several times over by 2010 so that this brand, the flagship of the entire SABMiller global group, can rank among the five greatest premium brands in the world.

An investment of almost CZK 300 million will enable the annual production of up to 3 million hectolitres of Pilsner Urquell beer. The entire project is divided into four stages spanning three years. The first two are planned for the period ending in May 2004. They include the construction of the new building, installation of new equipment and reconstruction of a part of the existing facility – with minimal impact on current production. Expectations for the two following stages of reconstruction is May 2006.

“I daresay our brewhouse will be one of the best in both Europe and worldwide in terms of technology and production efficiency and environmental impact,” says Vaclav Berka, manager of the Plzen brewery. “The traditional method of production of Pilsner Urquell will not change in any case: we will preserve the copper mash kettles, the triple-mash process and direct gas heating. Everything will be controlled fully automatically and safety will increase substantially, e.g. when disinfecting the equipment. In terms of environment, the important aspect is a reduction of emissions and an improvement of the energy balance. With new technology, we will reduce the volume of waste and focus on improving the quality of wastewater discharged.”

Plzensky Prazdroj, a. s. is a leader on the Czech market and with export to 50 countries worldwide; it is also the largest exporter of Czech beer. Plzensky Prazdroj’s principal brands in the Czech Republic are Pilsner Urquell, Gambrinus, Radegast and Velkopopovicky Kozel. Plzensky Prazdroj, a. s. employs 2,754 people in its breweries in Plzen, Nosovice and Velke Popovice and in 13 sales and distribution centres all over the Czech Republic. The Plzensky Prazdroj group also includes Slovakia’s Pivovar Saris brewery, No. 2 in the Slovak beer market. The Plzensky Prazdroj group is the most important brewing industry player in the Central and Eastern Europe.


30 May, 2003