3:26:33 PM | 7/8/2005
Beer makers in Vietnam are investing large amounts of money into new beer breweries, and with domestic demand not expected to rise any time soon, the market is set to be awash, Ho Chi Minh City market experts have warned.
Among the companies investing in expanding capacity is the Saigon Beer Company (Sabeco). In 2004, the company's beer output was 403 million liters, of which 268 million liters were produced at its main brewery in Ho Chi Minh City and the remainder at affiliated plants, Thi said.
The Beer Can Tho and Beer Ha Tinh breweries are set to increase capacity from the current 15 million to 50 million litres a year each and the Beer Ha Tinh facility will increase capacity from 15 million to 30 million liters.
The company is also planning to build many new large breweries, including a 100 million-liter brewery in Ho Chi Minh City's Cu Chi district, a 15 million-liter brewery in the southern Bac Lieu Province and a 50 million-liter brewery in Quang Nam.
The Hanoi Beer & Beverage Corporation (Habeco) has announced plans to build a 100 million-liter plant in the northern Vinh Phuc province and expand its Thanh Hoa Brewery. The corporation also plans to acquire two beer companies in Hai Duong and Quang Binh provinces.
Foreign investors too are in the race - the Singapore-invested Beer Vietnam has already applied to the Government to increase production from 150 million to 230 million liters.
The Danish-invested Beer Hue Company has announced a project to build a new 50 million-liter brewery in the Phu Bai Industrial Park.
The Dong Ha-Huda Beer Joint Venture, between Vietnam and Denmark, plans to increase annual capacity by 30 million liters and Australia's Foster's Beer Company will expand its plant in Danang to increase annual capacity from 45 million to 75 million liters.
Other famous foreign beer companies from the US, South America and Denmark have also researched the Vietnamese market and are all set to establish joint ventures with local firms to produce beer for both domestic consumption and export.
Recently, the Vietnam Milk Joint Stock Company also announced a VND300 billion ($19.1 million) investment to build a brewery.
According to the Vietnam Beer & Beverage Association, the country's beer output reached 1.37 billion liters in 2004 and is estimated to rise to 1.5 billion liters this year, a figure originally expected to be reached in 2010. At the current rate of investment, production capacity would reach 2.5 billion liters by 2010.
However, consumption is just below one billion liters a year and exports, a modest three million liters.
There are now 323 breweries in Vietnam.
Vietnamese
