“We hope to meet with AB InBev management in the coming weeks”.
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AB InBev or Anheuser-Busch InBev, just launched over a $100 billion bid for its closest competitor, SABMiller.
MillerCoors was created in 2008 as a joint venture in the USA by SABMiller and Molson Coors, with Molson Coors now holding a 42% stake.
Belgium-based AB InBev said it is also selling the Miller global business.
The combined entity will have complementary geographical footprints and brands with operation in every major beer market, including strong growth markets of Africa, Asia, and Central and South America.
That deal includes all Miller brands and trademarks across the globe, and gives MolsonCoors-or whatever that company will be named-the right to import Peroni and Pilsner Urquell into the U.S.
The transaction is set to complete in the second half of 2016, subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals – otherwise InBev will face a $3-billion break fee.
Anheuser-Busch InBev NV on Wednesday said it had formally agreed to buy SABMiller PLC for £69,8 billion ($105,5 billion), a deal that creates a brewing behemoth that will dominate much of the global beer market.
AB InBev, the world’s largest beer company, owns Budweiser among many other brands.
According to AB InBev CEO Carlos Brito, the sale was a “proof point” that the company would be “very decisive and very prompt in dealing with any regulatory issues that arise”.
Around 35% of annual cost savings will come from making changes in this area, but AB InBev said it expects that “key members of SABMiller’s management team and employees would play a significant role in the combined group”. The company is listed in Brussels and NY. Anheuser-Busch rose 1% to a recent $119.58, while SABMiller’s London-traded shares, which have already popped sharply since mid-September, rose nearly 2% today.
It said it believes that “more can be achieved together than apart”.
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“In consolidating ownership of MillerCoors, we will strengthen our presence in the highly attractive USA beer market, further improve our global scale and agility, benefit from significantly enhanced cash flows, and capture substantial operational synergies”, Mark Hunter, the Molson Coors president and chief executive, said in a news release.
