New £6.7 million Distillery Results From Joint Venture

As a result of a partnership between Perthshire Distiller John Fergus and Co, and the Indian drinks group, Kyndal, it looks as though there will be a new distillery in Glenrothes, Fife. All things being equal, the micro distillery and bonded warehouse will be up and running by 2015

New distillery seeking emerging markets

The focus of the new distillery will be to export to markets in India, Africa and the Far East. It is hoped that the move will create fifteen new jobs, with expectations that the exports will result in earnings of about £3.6m over the next three years.

A £1.6 million grant from the Scottish government's Food Processing Marketing and Co-operation Scheme (FPMC) is facilitating the project, while Scottish Enterprise is also providing a £240,000 Regional Selective Assistance grant to support employment at the new distillery.

The news was announced by Minister for External Affairs Humza Yousaf during a visit to India to promote business links between the two countries. Mr Yousaf said: "This project is proof yet again that there are strong and positive economic reasons for setting up business in Scotland.  It is also another reason to celebrate our strong relationship with the Indian business community and an example of why we should seek out more collaborations."

This announcement comes as talks continue to drag on between India and the European Union on a free trade deal which will hopefully result in cuts to tariffs across a wide range of products and services, including Scotch whisky. India currently levies a 150% duty on whisky imports.
Kyndal Group managing director Siddharth Banerji commented: "Kyndal Group is an emerging markets player.

"Developments towards rationalisation in import duty structures would open up a large market for Scotch whisky, and Kyndal in partnership with John Fergus & Co would like to maximize this huge opportunity. Together, we would launch high-quality premium Scotch and ad-mix brands in these markets."

Kyndal Group was set up in 2002, and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Whyte & Mackay. Following the buyout of Whyte & Mackay by India's UB Group, Mr Banerji led a management buyout of Kyndal India in 2006.

The company currently employs more than 100 people in India, with sales offices and warehouses across the country.