Singapore-based Asia Pacific Breweries Ltd (APBL) will launch its flagship beer, Tiger, in India next year.
Asia Pacific Breweries lines up big plans for India
MUMBAI: Singapore-based Asia Pacific Breweries Ltd (APBL) will launch its flagship beer, Tiger, in India next year.
The beer maker, a joint venture between beer giant Heineken and Fraser & Neave group of companies, recently launched its Baron Strong Brew brand in Delhi.
Vivek Chhabra, regional director-South Asia & group business development director, APBL told DNA Money, "We are looking to make available our Tiger in India in a phased manner in the coming year and will take the Baron brand pan-India by the end of next fiscal."
Keen to tap the beer market in India, the company is setting up breweries in different parts of the country and is strengthening its distribution network. It holds majority stake in two breweries in Hyderabad and Aurangabad and owns a brewery in Goa.
It plans to revamp the Goa brewery with an investment of Rs70 crore next fiscal, said Chhabra.
According to him, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra together account for almost 40% of beer consumption in the country, while Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Delhi, Kerala, and Uttar Pradesh account take a further 40%. As for per capita consumption, the highest recorded figures are from Goa, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.
Currently, the Indian beer market is dominated by Vijay Mallya-owned United Breweries which owns the Kingfisher brand, SAB Miller's Foster, Royal Challenge, Haywards 5000 and Castle Lager brands, Danish brand Carlsberg, Karan Billimoria's Cobra beer and Budweiser.
According to Datamonitor, the Indian beer market grew by 10.2% in 2007 to $2.5 billion, and is expected to touch $3.9 billion by 2012.
Analysts Nikhil Vora, Bhushan Gajaria and Rahul Narayan of IDFC-SSKI said in a note to clients on January 23 that the beer industry continues to piggy-ride on favourable demographics, consumption and market deregulation.
The business dynamics look promising, as markets like Gujarat open up and the country moves towards uniform duty structure in alcoholic beverages.
India accounts for 2.9% of the Asia-Pacific market by value and United Breweries (Holdings) Limited is the leading company in the Indian beer market, with a 45.5% share of the market's volume.
Meanwhile, APBL is scouting for opportunities elsewhere in the Asia Pacific region, too. The company has over 40 beer brands and has a market capitalisation of around $2.5 billion globally.
An investment banker with a foreign bank said APB has initiated talks with a few local players in Australia, Korea, Taiwan and Philippines for acquiring beer brands and breweries. It is also looking at greenfield expansion in these markets, the banker added.
Chhabra said the company was open to all kinds of growth opportunities, including acquisitions. But, the plans were all on the drawing board.
China is also on the company's radar and APBL will work out different business models for the country going forward, he conceded.
r_mithun@dnaindia.net
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}