Timisoreana, the oldest brewery in Romania, was the third option of South Africa's SABMiller when it decided to enter the domestic market.
At present, however, the centre in Timisoara is undergoing a 50m-euro investment programme that will triple production and is "providing" the best-selling beer of Romania.
The brewery in Timisoara, built in 1718, is not like normal breweries as it has retained part of its three-century history. "At this moment, the brewery produces only Timisoreana, Ursus and Ciucas brands, but after we finish investments in brewery renovation and modernisation in the first half of next year, we'll be able to produce other brands, as well," stated Dragos Hopulele, manager of Timisoara brewery.
He has worked at the brewery for 11 years and has assisted and coordinated most modernisation processes the brewery has undergone.
The situation has changed since the brewery was set up and the best-selling beer brands are domestic ones, while beer consumption per capita came to 89 litres in late 2007, triple the figure of ten years ago.
According to Stephan Maria Weber, chairman of Ursus Breweries, consumption will further rise by 3-4% annually in the next five years and could reach as high as 110-115 litres per capita.
In the wake of a rise in consumption, Ursus Breweries started a 50m-euro investment in the brewery of Timisoara in the second half of 2007 in order to triple production and cut resources consumption. Last year, the brewery had a production capacity of 21,000 hectolitres per week, or 1 million hectolitres per annum. In the wake of this investment, due to be finalised in the first half of 2009, the brewery will triple its capacity to 63,000 hectolitres per week, or 3.2 million hectolitres per year.
The project also includes a new PET bottling line, a segment that in 2006 helped double Timisoara brand sales. The Timisoara brewery became the second production centre owned by SABMiller, after the Buzau brewery. Ursus Brewery will boast production capacity of over 6.3 million hectolitres in late 2008, from 3.1 in 2005.
From a weight of 8% in the company's overall 2002 sales, Timisoreana at the end of fiscal year ended in March came to generate 45% of SABMiller's Romanian sales.
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