TOKYO -- Japan's Asahi Group Holdings is the likely buyer of the Peroni, Grolsch and Meantime beer brands from Anheuser-Busch InBev.
AB InBev said Asahi, makers of beer (primarily Asahi), soft drinks and packaged foods, has offered $2.87 billion for the beer brands, which are being sold as part of AB InBev's voluntary modifications to gain regulatory approval of its planned purchase of SABMiller.
“We are pleased to have received this binding offer from Asahi on the Peroni, Grolsch and Meantime brands and businesses," said Carlos Brito, CEO of AB InBev. "[These are] iconic beer brands with long-standing heritage and leading positions in core markets."
The two companies will now "commence the relevant employee information and consultation processes applicable to a potential sale of these brands and businesses," AB InBev said. In the meantime, AB InBev has agreed to a period of exclusivity with Asahi with respect to the sale of the beer brands and businesses during the processes.
AB InBev launched a search for potential purchasers in December "to assess their interest in the Peroni and Grolsch brand families and their associated businesses in Italy, the Netherlands and the U.K."
Potential buyers at the time included Dutch group Heineken, U.S.-based Molson Coors and Ireland's C & C Group, according to reports.
The move came after AB InBev agreed to sell rights to all of the brands under the MillerCoors umbrella in the United States—including Blue Moon, Leinenkugel's, Crispin cider and all of the Miller beer brands—to Molson Coors to avoid regulatory issues in the United States.
Like that deal, the Peroni and Grolsch deal reflects "AB InBev’s proactive approach to addressing potential regulatory concerns" that may arise as part of the merger with SABMiller, the company said.
Brussels-based AB InBev launched its formal $106-billion takeover of London's SABMiller in November in a deal to create a unified company that would earn half of the entire brewing industry's profits.
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