E-Malt.com News article: Ethiopia: Heineken’s new brewery set for completion in mid-2014

Heineken’s new brewery in Ethiopia being constructed at Kilinto area on the outskirts of Addis Ababa is set for completion in mid-2014, New Business Ethiopia reported on February 10.

The announcement was made by Johan Doyer, Managing Director of Heineken in Ethiopia during the formal arrival of six large fermentation tanks at the site, after six weeks of travel on the site over the weekend.

The plant, which is expected to produce 1.5 million hectolitres of beverages annually, has a construction cost slated at about 127 million Euros. It’s also expected to brew all of the Harar and Bedele brands which it currently is the owner of, while in the future Heineken brands are planned to be brewed on the site.

Anteneh Mitiku, General Manager of the Kilinto factory project, stated that In term of the market share although they haven’t made a specific projection he’s witnessed the market share doubling in size over the last five years, with the growth rate increasing from year to year and as such see a good market potential.

Heineken has previously invested around 120 million Euros when it bought two renowned Ethiopian breweries Bedele and Harar, as well as 45 million Euros to increase both of the breweries capacity.

It has also previously signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Agricultural Transformation Agency (ATA) and the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research for a 4 year Malt Barley Program.

The program was designed with the stated goals of expanding the value of the malt barley business for the region and was envisaged to support 20,000 smallholder farmers, resulting in 120,000 direct beneficiaries.

The brewery estimates that the annual malting barley demand by the existing breweries in Ethiopia is higher than the supply, as the only barley malt factory can meet only 60 percent of the demand.


12 February, 2014