SABMiller Commissions new Brewery in Australia

SABMiller announces that Pacific Beverages, its joint venture in Australia with Coca-Cola Amatil, has commenced brewing at its new US$105 million Bluetongue brewery in Warnervale, approximately 95km north of Sydney.

The state of the art facility has a capacity of 500,000 hectolitres and will incorporate two brewhouses in the one brewery. This ‘twin stream brewhouse’ will enable the production of a combination of the popular domestic brands in addition to SABMiller’s international brands Peroni Nastro Azzurro, Peroni Leggera, Miller Genuine Draft, Miller Chill and Grolsch.

The brewery has taken 18 months to construct and will utilise cutting edge technology to make it not only one of the most environmentally sustainable breweries in the SABMiller group but also in the world. As a result, the brewery will minimise its water and energy consumption, waste generation and atmospheric emissions.

Ari Mervis, Managing Director of SABMiller Asia, commented: “This impressive facility is the first to be built by our joint venture in Australia and we are optimistic that it will enable us to make further progress in this attractive market. The brewery investment will ensure the business has an ability to provide a winning combination of local offerings and some of SABMiller’s most popular global brands to satisfy consumer demand.”

Peter McLoughlin, CEO of Pacific Beverages commented: “Pacific Beverages has been able to draw on the skills and expertise of its parent companies, SABMiller and Coca-Cola Amatil, to facilitate this investment. The new brewery allows us to provide fresh beer in the popular draft format for consumers here in Australia and will be a watershed for our business.

In accordance with SABMiller’s key priority of being more efficient in its water use, the brewery will also feature a water recycling plant which utilises the latest technologies available to produce high quality reusable water. This recycled water will be for general maintenance of the brewery including wash down and cleaning, boilers, refrigeration, staff amenities and fire water top-up. The brewery also incorporates storm-water harvesting technology, capable of capturing 900,000 litres for later supply to the nearby wetland conservation scheme, Porters Creek.

Pacific Beverages currently has a 10 percent market share of the premium beer market, which it has managed to achieve since its incorporation four years ago.