The brewers of the Brussels Beer Project (BBP) are investing €6 million in a new brewery in Anderlecht. The company announced this on Friday.
The new brewery will have an annual capacity of 35,000 hectolitres and will allow BBP to brew all its beers in Brussels. Currently, BBP has a small brewery in Rue Dansaert, while two-thirds of its production occurs at a partner brewery in Limburg.
The Dansaert site will remain operational but will shift focus onto experiments on smaller brews, something which has become a characteristic of the brewery.
The brewery aims to be self-sufficient in terms of electricity, through the use of solar energy, while the hot water generated by the production will be used to heat the building. The new project will also feature a garden of almost 1,000 square meters and a taproom to accommodate more than 25,000 people a year, the BBP officials say.
Work on the new brewery will start in September 2020, which is expected to open doors one year later. The company will double its workforce at the same time, aiming to eventually employ 50 people.
The investment fund Invest for Jobs is contributing €2.6 million and a loan has been taken out with BNP Paribas Fortis for the rest, the Brussels company announced on Friday.
Like many of its colleagues, the Brussels brewery has felt the change wake of the coronavirus crisis, which saw them halt production until the end of April. The company has developed channels to increase online sales, which currently account for 15% of the business. "However, this is far from compensating for what we were doing in the hotel and catering industry," said co-founder Sébastien Morvan.
Currently, restaurants and cafés have been closed since March 14. The National Security Council is due to examine the situation with a view to a possible reopening on 8 June, as part of the phasing out of current lockdown measures.
Jules Johnston
The Brussels Times
