Heineken Announces Billion-Dollar Investment for New Yucatán Beer Plant

Heineken will invest US$2.75 billion to build a beer production facility in Kanasín, outside Mérida, Yucatán. The project represents one of the company’s largest investments in Mexico in recent years.

The announcement was made Wednesday during President Claudia Sheinbaum’s morning press conference.

The Yucatán beer plant project will create more than 300 direct jobs, 2,500 indirect positions, and 2,300 temporary construction jobs. The plant is projected to begin operations in 2027, said Heineken CEO Oriol Bonaclocha. The beer industry generates more than 700,000 direct and indirect jobs throughout Mexico.

“Today, from Yucatán, we celebrate a very important step that reaffirms the path the government of the Republic has set for development with justice, territorial balance, and shared well-being,” Yucatán Gov. Joaquín Díaz Mena declared during the announcement.

Building on the Yucatán Beer Industry

This investment builds upon Yucatán’s role as a brewing center. The state already hosts one of Mexico’s largest beer production facilities: Grupo Modelo’s brewery in Hunucma, which opened in 2017 with an investment of 8.5 billion pesos (US$443.7 million).

Located in the municipality of Hunucmá, Yucatán, Cerveceria Yucateca produces 220,000 cans and bottles of beer hourly for Corona, Modelo, Victoria, Leon and Montejo brands. The company estimates a yearly production of 1.9 billion units, with around 14% of the output—266 million bottles and cans—shipped to nine countries, including Canada, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Guatemala, Colombia, Chile, France and the United States.

The León and Montejo brands were originally brewed in Mérida, Yucatán, by the Cervecería Yucateca, which was bought by Modelo in 1979. León is a Munich-style dark beer that was initially brewed in the southeast of the country at the beginning of the 20th century. Montejo was first introduced in 1960 to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Yucateca brewery.

The story of beer in Yucatán mirrors Mexico’s broader brewing evolution. After Mexico’s war of independence, beer production began to flourish in Mexico, and during the latter part of the 19th century an influx of German immigrants brought additional knowledge and expertise to the field which caused the local market to diversify and improve its products.

Some of these include the Cervecería Yucateca by José Ponce Solis in Mérida in 1869 (with German equipment and a German brewer). This historic brewery would become the birthplace of two iconic brands that still carry the Yucatecan name today.

Beer used to be mass produced in the Yucatán before Grupo Modelo bought the local Cervecería Yucateca in 1979 and moved its production from the original brewery in Mérida to Tuxtepec (Oaxaca) a couple of decades later. Large-scale beer production returned to Yucatán in 2017 when Grupo Modelo opened its Hunucma facility, bringing León and Montejo production back to the state.

Craft Beer Development

While industrial beer production left Yucatán decades ago, the peninsula has seen growth in craft brewing in recent years. Mérida is home to around twenty breweries. The two main producers are Ceiba and Patito.

Ceiba beer is produced in Yucatan. A brewery operator said that the brewery was around some twenty or so years ago but ceased operation and restarted in 2013. It is named after the sacred Ceiba tree that Mayans worship as the “Holy Tree of Life” which is considered the axle of the world.

The craft beer movement has found a place in Mérida’s cultural landscape. Beer enthusiasts can now find quality local brews at establishments like La Negrita Cantina, Apoala, and La Vizcaina.

The historic Montejo brand has expanded to international markets. In September, Montejo will appear at bars, restaurants and at grocery and convenience stores across the southwest United States. This is the first import from Mexico to the United States by Anheuser-Busch, which now owns the brand and brews it in Oaxaca.

Sustainability and Community Engagement

Heineken has said that sustainability will be central to the new facility’s operations. In line with HEINEKEN’s global sustainability strategy ‘Brew a Better World’, the brewery will implement water processes that integrate circular economy practices to ensure water reuse through treatment systems.

The company has conducted community outreach, including indigenous consultations, to ensure the project considers Maya cultural values and environmental concerns. Despite the availability of water in southeastern Mexico, Heineken says the new Yucatán plant will aim to use just two liters of water per liter of product.

Location and Regional Growth

The choice of Yucatán reflects economic trends in Mexico’s southeast, building on the success of existing operations like the Grupo Modelo facility in Hunucma. The plant’s location in Yucatán will reduce distribution costs and enhance supply chains. Previously, beer shipments to the southeast originated from Veracruz, requiring longer transportation routes.

The Hunucma brewery ships exports through the port of Progreso to European and African countries. State officials noted that “Grupo Modelo will send six thousand containers of the Corona, Modelo, Victoria, León and Montejo brands to the international market.”

President Sheinbaum thanked Federal Secretary of Economy Marcelo Ebrard for his role in the institutional management that made this investment possible. Ebrard noted that Heineken’s investment in Yucatán forms part of the investment portfolio promoted by the current administration.

Production and Employment

The Kanasín brewery will create more than 2,000 direct and indirect jobs. Operations are scheduled to commence in 2026, producing brands such as Tecate, Dos Equis, Indio, Bohemia, Amstel Ultra, and Sol.

This facility will use current technology while maintaining environmental standards. The investment signals confidence in Yucatán’s workforce and infrastructure. The peninsula’s location, with access to both Pacific and Atlantic shipping routes through the Tren Maya and highway connections, positions it as a distribution hub for beer throughout Mexico and potentially to export markets.

Economic Impact

For Yucatán, Heineken’s investment represents economic opportunity and recognition of the region’s brewing capabilities and potential for industrial growth. The project builds on existing tradition while implementing current sustainability practices and community engagement.

The success of the Grupo Modelo facility in Hunucma, which produces 7 million hectoliters annually with plans to expand to 15 million, has established Yucatán as a player in Mexico’s brewing industry. With the addition of Heineken’s new facility, the peninsula will become one of Mexico’s concentrated brewing regions.

As construction begins in the coming years, the Kanasín brewery will join other international companies that have chosen Yucatán as their Mexican base of operations. The combination of workforce, location, proven logistics infrastructure, and government policies has made the peninsula an attractive investment destination.

As Heineken builds its facility in Kanasín, craft brewers in Mérida continue developing the artisanal traditions that first made Yucatecan beer known. The region has maintained its connection to beer production and is expanding that tradition on an industrial scale.

With operations set to begin in 2027, the Heineken brewery represents both a return to Yucatán’s brewing past and a step into its industrial future.