FDBusiness.com

Diageo, the world’s largest producer of Scotch whisky, is to invest £3.5m to expand and upgrade its Caol Ila distillery on the Sound of Islay. Production at the site will be increased by 700,000 litres a year.

Established in 1846, the distillery currently produces 5.7 million litres of whisky every year, with the majority used in Diageo’s blended whisky brands. The upgrade is scheduled to commence in June and take six months to complete.

“An investment of this scale is fantastic for the local economy and it signals Diageo’s deep-rooted commitment to the Islay whisky industry,” says Kevin Sutherland, senior site manager on Islay. “Caol Ila is a wonderful distillery of which we are very proud and I am delighted we are going to be able to produce even more fantastic single malt as well as contributing to the growth of Johnnie Walker and Diageo’s other leading global Scotch brands.”

To meet growing international demand for its Scotch whisky brands, Diageo has already invested £600m to expand production capacity over the past six years, including £40m on The Roseisle distillery (pictured) in Speyside, the first malt distillery of scale to be opened in Scotland in over 30 years.