United Breweries (UBL) has successfully commissioned its ₹110 crore investment in a new canning line at its Ellora Brewery in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Maharashtra. The facility, located at the Waluj MIDC area, is now operational with a capacity of 40,000 cans per hour. As reported by multiple sources, this represents the first canning line at the Ellora brewery and is expected to become operational in September 2026, subject to statutory approvals. The facility is part of the HEINEKEN group's expansion strategy to enhance production capacity and respond to market demand for canned beverages, with the new line being among the fastest canning lines across the company's manufacturing network. According to Business Upturn, the addition of canning capabilities alongside the existing bottling infrastructure will provide the brewery with greater packaging flexibility to respond to evolving consumer preferences and the growing demand for cans in the Indian market.
UBL expects its premium beer business to grow 20-25% annually over the next three to five years, nearly three times the pace of India's broader beer market. As reported by Mint, premium products currently account for about 10% of UBL's business and are growing at more than 20% in volume. Managing Director and CEO Vivek Gupta stated that the company is stepping up investment in premium brands such as Heineken Silver and Kingfisher Ultra, with Heineken Silver growing over 40% nationally after being launched in three states. The Ellora canning line will initially manufacture cans of Kingfisher Strong, Kingfisher Premium, Bullet Strong and London Pilsner for the Maharashtra market, with the facility expected to start production by the end of September. According to Gupta, the shift towards cans is driven by both premiumisation and affordability, as smaller cans offer lower price points than larger bottles while being easier to chill, store and carry. The company has also expanded Heineken Silver into three new states - Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Kerala - with the brand continuing to see strong momentum nationally. At its Capital Markets Day 2026, UBL highlighted that premium beer is growing around 2.8 times faster than the overall category, with nearly 70% of premium consumers having traded up from mainstream beer.
The investment will enable better utilisation of the brewery's existing packaging infrastructure, improving operational agility and productivity by allowing UBL to optimise packaging formats based on market demand with its current packaging capacity of up to 1.5 million cases per month. As reported by Business Standard, the Ellora facility will initially produce cans of Kingfisher Strong, Kingfisher Premium, Bullet Strong and London Pilsner to meet growing consumer demand in Maharashtra. The added canning capability will also provide greater flexibility to optimise packaging formats across the portfolio as demand evolves, supporting the company's premiumization strategy over time. The Ellora canning line follows the commissioning of a new canning line at UBL's Nizam Brewery in Telangana in July 2026, underscoring the company's continued focus on strengthening its manufacturing footprint and productivity across India. According to Gupta, the new line will have capacity to produce nearly 40,000 cans per hour, giving the company additional flexibility to cater to premium, mainstream and economy beer brands in the state.
Recent state-level reforms have demonstrated significant potential for beer market growth, with UBL outperforming the category in these markets. Karnataka's alcohol-in-beverage duty structure was followed by approximately 55% category growth in the first month after implementation, while improved retail availability in Jharkhand supported around 55% growth in H1 FY2026, and reforms in Maharashtra contributed to approximately 35% category growth during the same period. As reported by Business Standard, UBL highlighted that taxation remains a key constraint on beer affordability, with beer facing a 1.3-times higher tax burden per unit of alcohol than IMFL despite having lower alcohol content. Excise duties account for around 65% of the retail price of beer, leaving room for greater affordability through pricing and volume-based taxation reforms. The company is pursuing a state-by-state strategy to balance growth and profitability, with greater emphasis on margin improvement in lower-margin markets and share gains in higher-margin states.
Choice Institutional Equities has issued a buy rating on UBL with a target price of ₹1,480, implying an upside of 15.3% from current levels. According to the latest research report dated September 04, 2026, UBL's premium portfolio volume has expanded at ~45% CAGR over the past two years, with premium volumes posting ~21% growth even when overall volumes grew only by ~3% in FY26. The brokerage expects net revenue CAGR of 11.7% over FY26–FY29E driven by improvement in product mix, with premium beer generating ~2x EBITDA margin over economy. Choice Institutional Equities projects structural cost efficiencies and operating leverage to support ~28% Net Income CAGR over FY26–FY29E, supported by tailwinds in key markets and capacity-led distribution expansion. Following the commissioning announcement, UBL shares traded in the green with the stock opening at ₹1,305 and touching an intraday high of ₹1,322.90. At the day's high, the stock was up around 1.10% from its previous close of ₹1,308.50, though the stock has declined around 7% over the past month and is down 17.9% so far this year.
