Maputo — The brewery owned by the company Cervejas de Mocambique (CDM – Beers of Mozambique) in the northern city of Nampula plans, in the near future, to increase its production by 35 per cent to 650,000 hectolitres a year.

Currently the Nampula brewery, inaugurated by President Armando Guebuza in 2010, is producing 480,000 hectolitres per year.

According to information from CDM obtained by AIM, the increase in production results from the recent installation of two additional tanks for fermenting and storing beer acquired from the German company Siemens.

The purchase of these tanks, each with a capacity of 1,500 hectolitres, cost the company 19 million meticais (about 644,000 US dollars).

Company sources say the investment is justified because of the increased volume of sales of CDM’s beers in the northern provinces of Nampula, Niassa and Cabo Delgado.

The initial investment in the brewery was 72 million US dollars.

Construction of this factory was intended to guarantee the availability of beer in the north, particularly at moments of peak demand such as the Xmas and New Year festive season.

Before the Nampula factory, CDM used to supply its customers in the north by road from its breweries in Beira or Maputo.

Apart from CDM’s traditional brands, the Nampula brewery also produces a beer made from cassava. This beer, with the brand name Impala, is made 70 per cent from cassava and 30 per cent from barley. CDM claims it is the first of its kind in the world.

The brewery has become a guaranteed buyer for cassava produced by 1,500 small farmers in Nampula province.