Johnnie Walker Owner Closes Spirits Manufacturing Plant in India

(Photo: United Spirits)

The Indian arm of British liquor giant Diageo plans to close another of its factories by the end of August, according to a stock exchange filing.

United Spirits Limited has confirmed its intention to close a plant in the Malkajgiri district of Hyderabad, the fourth-most populous city in India. The facility accounted for around 2% of the company’s revenue in the 2025-2026 financial year, equivalent to US $62.6 million.

The subsidiary manufactures a wide variety of Diageo-owned brands, the most famous of which is McDowell’s No.1, the largest umbrella spirits franchise in the world. United Spirits is also responsible for the production of Royal Challenge, Signature, Antiquity, Black Dog and Director’s Special Black, and imports foreign-made staples like Captain Morgan and Johnnie Walker.

The company has not confirmed which brands are produced at the soon-to-be-shuttered Malkajgiri facility, nor how many employees will be affected.

“As part of the said agility programme and subject to receipt of necessary statutory approvals, the company intends to transfer the excise licence issued by Telangana Prohibition & Excise Department to another party, following which our factory operations at the unit will cease,” the company added.

It’s the latest in a series of cutbacks as United Spirits aims to streamline its operations in the country. The company announced the closure of a different Hyderabad facility at the beginning of last year, preceded by the closure of a Uttar Pradesh facility in 2023.

For a juggernaut like United Spirits, however, these may only be drops in the bucket. USL is one of the world’s largest spirits companies by volume, responsible for over 140 individual brands and an annual revenue of $1.3 billion. Interestingly, USL is one of very few spirits conglomerates that has reported profit growth over the past few years.