Heineken to build $474 mn plant in Mexico

Mexico City, Mar 11 (EFE). —  Dutch brewing giant Heineken said it planned to invest 7.35 billion pesos (about $474 million) in its seventh plant in Mexico, a facility in the northern border state of Chihuahua.

The plant will be located in the city of Meoqui, creating 2,000 jobs during the construction phase and 500 permanent jobs.

“More global firms are increasingly deciding to invest in our country. Investments like this are what we want to continue multiplying in Mexico,” President Enrique Peña Nieto said during an event at the Los Pinos presidential residence on Tuesday.

The Heineken plant will be the 27th brewery in Mexico and will have a “very positive” impact on the country, Economy Secretary Ildefonso Guajardo said.

Five years ago, Heineken made the “biggest investment and bet in its history,” acquiring Mexican brewer Cuauhtemoc Moctezuma, the company’s top executive in Mexico, Marc Busain, said, adding that the new plant showed the Dutch brewer’s confidence in the country.

“The new plant will serve growing demand from our customers in Mexico and the United States,” producing 5 million hectoliters of beer annually, Busain said.

The Dutch brewing giant has more than 250 brands, including Heineken, in its product portfolio.