Germany: Paulaner to massively expand recently purchased Gotha brewery

The Paulaner Brauerei Gruppe is set to massively expand its brewery in Gotha, only two years after taking over the former Oettinger site, Inside.Beer reported on August 22.

The Bavarian group plans to raise production capacity from 1.7 million hl to 3.5 million hl annually, according to Thueringer Allgemeine. At the heart of the project are a new logistics hall at the corner of Krusewitzstraße and Dirk-Kollmar-Straße, as well as a new production line for canned beverages, which will follow the completion of a new glass bottling line scheduled for the end of this year.

According to managing director Dirk Steinebach, Paulaner will invest a high double-digit million EUR amount in Gotha. The project is supported by the Free State of Thuringia, with economics minister Colette Boos-John (CDU) handing over a nearly 2m EUR (USD 2.2m) subsidy. The expansion will create 40 new jobs, adding to the current 180 employees.

The brewery already produces for global markets, with wheat beer and the cola-mix drink Spezi and export to China, reported Thueringer Allgemeine. Paulaner’s export strength pushed group sales above EUR 1 billion for the first time in 2024, according to MDR.

The Gotha site became part of Paulaner on 1 January 2023, when the company acquired the brewery from Oettinger. At that time, Paulaner committed to invest in modernisation and job security, turning the former Oettinger facility into a key production hub within its network.

On 20 August 2025, Gotha’s Stadtrat approved the initiation of a zoning plan for the expansion. Mayor Knut Kreuch (SPD) strongly advocated for the project, citing its economic importance, while also acknowledging challenges such as increased traffic and the demolition of a local beverage store. Some residents expressed concerns about quality of life and property values, but Kreuch pointed out that the site has been designated as industrial land since the 1970s.