Emperador allots P4 B for expansion

MANILA, Philippines - Emperador Distillers Inc., the hard liquor unit of property tycoon Andrew Tan’s Alliance Global Group Inc., is allocating about P4 billion to increase local production by 2016.

Sources said the company is gearing up to expand capacity as its local bottling facility is currently running at 75 percent capability.

Funding will come from proceeds of the firm’s private placement amounting to P16 billion.

Emperador expects the liquor industry to revert to positive growth trajectory this year after its slump in 2013 on account of higher sin taxes.

Despite the industry-wide sales contraction, Emperador managed to sustain its sales volume and boost its market share.

Given better prospects, the liquor firm expects 2014 to be another banner year.

Sales in the fourth quarter of 2013 remained strong despite the massive devastation caused by super typhoon Yolanda.

Emperador aims to double its sales in the next four years as it hopes to capture a third of the global brandy market.

The company has made some headway overseas with the acquisition of Bodega San Bruno S.A., a brand company located in Jerez, Spain.  It now owns about 1,000 hectares of land, which the company plans to build into vineyards to support its brandy production in Spain.

Emperador is also exploring new markets like Vietnam to further boost its revenues.

It produces Emperador Gold and Emperador Light brandies and a line of flavored alcoholic beverages called The Bar. It recently introduced Emperador Deluxe, which is bottled in Spain.