San Miguel Corporation of the Philippines has renamed its domestic subsidiary as part of a modification of its regional investment structure.
Golden Dragon Brewery (GDB), a subordinate partner of San…
San Miguel Corporation of the Philippines has renamed its domestic subsidiary as part of a modification of its regional investment structure. Golden Dragon Brewery (GDB), a subordinate partner of San Miguel, received permission from the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Khanh Hoa People“s Committee to operate under a new name, San Miguel Brewery Vietnam Ltd. (SMBV). GDB, a US$ 29.5 million joint venture, was originally set up in 1994 between San Miguel and Vinagen in Khanh Hoa province. In 1996, however, the joint venture was granted permission to metamorphose into a wholly-owned foreign enterprise capitalized at US$ 40 million. The agreement specified that Dragon Island Investment, the Filipino beer giant“s Hong Kong-based holding company, would take over the day-to-day management of the brewery. But San Miguel executives said they now wished to unify all brewing facilities operating in the Asia-Pacific region under one umbrella company and an application to change the name of the Vietnam-based brewery was lodged. SMBV is expected to display the “escudo“, the official logo of San Miguel“s flagship product, on all its goods. The “escudo“ is taken directly from the Spanish Royal Grant that was granted to San Miguel in 1890, after the company“s founders submitted an application to brew beer in Manila. San Miguel currently operates a brewery in the central coastal city of Nha Trang where San Miguel Pale Pilsen, the brewery“s flagship brand, and Red Horse beer are produced for sale on the domestic market. Edgardo Patron was recently appointed SMBV general manager and is expected to oversee domestic operations and strengthen sales and distribution in Vietnam. Patron said San Miguel Pale Pilsen was recently awarded a “Monde Selection Gold Medal” for product excellence and quality at a beer competition held in Brussels. Last year, the domestically-brewed draught received the highly coveted “Gold Award” at the same competition.