Tsingtao Brewery bets big on Southeast Asia

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China-based Tsingtao Brewery plans to open new breweries in neighboring countries in Southeast Asia.

Tsingtao Brewery intends to invest around $100m to set up a plant in Bangkok, Thailand. The 200,000 liters capacity plant is expected to commence operations in early 2013.

The plant will be the company’s first overseas and the first for the Chinese brewery industry, China Daily reported.

Tsingtao Brewery deputy general manager Ma Ning said the company isn’t excluding the possibility of having more plants in the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region, on top of the plant in Bangkok.

Ning said the company is especially aiming at markets that are large and open enough – those that have comparatively cheap labor and where the Tsingtao brand is already well recognized.

He said Tsingtao has sent a team to look closer at ASEAN and is expected to draft a plan on how its products can be best developed and promoted in the 10 countries of the organization.

Around 1.5% of the company’s sales come from overseas and the company expects the figure to increase to 50% in the next three years.