Labatt to create 25 jobs with $69M expansion at Edmonton brewery

EDMONTON -

Labatt Breweries' expansion in Edmonton will create more than two dozen jobs and is a sign of Alberta's recovering economy, the company and politicians say.

Labatt is spending $69 million to add brewing types and capacity in Alberta's capital city by way of a new 30,000-square foot warehouse alongside updates to its brewhouse and control room.

According to president Kyle Norrington, the number of people employed at the site will increase from 180 to 205.

"The investment is really about innovation and growth. In 1964, that innovation, I said, was about stubbies. Today, it's focused on what we call ready-to-drink beverages," Norrington told a crowd of reporters and municipal and provincial officials on Monday.

Ready-to-drink beverages -- such as Mike's Hard Lemonade, Palm Bay, Okanagan Cider, American Vintage Iced Tea and, soon in Edmonton, NUTRL Vodka Soda -- represent about 30 per cent of alcohol category growth, Norrington said.

The announcement was touted as a sign of Alberta's growing attractiveness as a place to invest and do business.

"We take this as a vote of confidence in Alberta and its economic recovery, a recovery that is in full steam ahead right now," said Premier Jason Kenney, who later cracked a cold one with Labatt's president.

According to mayor Don Iveson, the city approved development and building permits for Labatt in less than 40 days.

"Which if you know anything about how challenging that sort of thing is historically with the City of Edmonton, that is meteoric progress which shows we, too, are open for business," he commented.

Labatt's history in Canada dates back to the 1850s, and about one century later, Labatt would announce plans to expand with a brewery in Alberta's capital city. Edmonton's facility was built in 1963. The brewer, now under the Anheuser-Busch brand, has locations in six provinces.

The company has invested about $119 million in Alberta.

Edmonton's Labatt brewery serves an estimated 3,000 retail outlets with products from 144 Alberta suppliers.