The demand for New Zealand wine, which has seen exports double since 2008, has put the industry in an optimistic state of mind, with many wine companies planning for future growth.

Wine Marlborough general manager Marcus Pickens said winery expansions and the rise in resource consents was led by increased plantings, which was in turn driven by demand.

There were around 50 wineries in Marlborough producing wine for about 140 companies, so as plantings increased the wineries had to expand to cope with increased volumes, he said.

The wine has to be produced somewhere, you've got to be able to bring the grapes in and then take the wine out to the market."

Many wine companies were working towards filling the processing capacity on their existing resource consents, but others were applying for new consents to increase production.

Pickens said anecdotally he was aware of a number of wine companies that had secured consents, something he thought would increase as more vineyards were planted in Marlborough.

A labour market survey commissioned by Wine Marlborough predicted another 6800 hectares of vineyards in the next five years.

Figures from the Marlborough District Council showed there were 26 resource consents granted since July 2010 to expand existing wineries or build new facilities.

The Awatere River Wine Company was granted resource consent to more than quadruple processing capacity in early June, growing from 500 tonnes to 3000 tonnes a year.

However, company director Louis Vavasour said the changes, which included installing additional tanks and cellar buildings, would take place over a period of five to seven years.

Image Courtesy and full article can be found at: http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/81123420/marlborough-wineries-in-expansion-mode-to-meet-growing-international-demand