Guinness maker announces further €400 million investment at Kildare brewery

Diageo has opened the first phase of its new brewery in Littleconnell, Newbridge, and says it will invest a further €400 million there over the next three years, bringing its Irish brewing plans close to €1 billion. The site was officially opened by Taoiseach [Irish leader] Micheál Martin and Chief Executive Sir Dave Lewis, with the company saying the new plant will help meet rising demand at home and abroad.

The newly opened brewery, which cost about €300 million, will produce Diageo’s range of ales and lagers including Rockshore, Harp, Smithwick’s and Kilkenny, along with licensed beers such as Carlsberg. Diageo said the brewery was built in under 18 months on a greenfield site and is powered entirely by renewable electricity.

The company says the facility has already created more than 50 permanent roles and supported around 650 construction jobs during the build. At full capacity, the Littleconnell site is expected to produce two million hectoliters, making it the second largest brewing operation in Ireland after St. James’s Gate in Dublin, according to The Irish Times.

The iconic gates at St. James' Gate in Dublin.

Diageo also confirmed that it has secured planning permission for a second brewery at the same location. That project, known as Brewery 2, will be dedicated to Guinness and Guinness 0.0 and is expected to more than double total site capacity.

Speaking at the opening, Martin praised the investment as “a powerful vote of confidence in Ireland and in our future as a world-leading, sustainable food and drink exporter,” while Diageo said the move underlines Ireland’s role in its global brewing network.

Diageo Chief Executive Sir Dave Lewis said, “The demand for Guinness and Guinness 0.0. is surging.” 

He added “How fitting that it’s in County Kildare, the birthplace of Arthur Guinness.”

Enterprise Ireland also backed the project and described the opening as a major milestone for the sector. Its Chief Executive Jenny Melia said the brewery was “a fantastic endorsement of our skills and capabilities in this sector, and will drive export growth."

Diageo said the advanced brewing and process technologies at the site are designed to reduce energy and water use. The timing is also significant. The company is shifting more of its beer production into Kildare just as Guinness continues to grow globally.