British brewer SABMiller and United States-Canadian Molson Coors said on Thursday US antitrust regulars had concluded a review and that they are “free to
proceed” with a joint venture in the US market under a new company called MillerCoors.
“SABMiller and Molson Coors expect the transaction to generate approximately $500-million in annual cost synergies to be delivered in full by the third full financial year of combined operations,” according to a joint statement.
“We are very pleased the US Department of Justice has given us clearance to proceed with the planned MillerCoors joint venture,” said Graham Mackay, SABMiller’s chief executive.
“Today’s news underscores our strong belief that this combination will not only generate significant growth and cost synergies, but will also create tremendous opportunities for innovations in products and services that will greatly benefit America’s beer distributors, retailers and consumers.”
Leo Kiely, CEO of Molson Coors, added: “MillerCoors is quickly moving toward becoming a reality, and I’m looking forward to working with the entire team to build on our momentum and grow our leading brands and consumer offerings.”
He added that “while we recognise that regulatory clearance is just one step in creating a dynamic US competitor, it is a critical milestone, and we’re obviously very happy about the outcome.”
The closing of the joint venture transaction is expected to take place around June 30. The Miller and Coors businesses will continue to be operated separately until that time.
SABMiller and Molson Coors will have equal voting rights in the new MillerCoors company, with SABMiller holding a 58% economic interest and Molson Coors 42%, the statement said.
The joint venture would have annual revenues of about $6,6-billion (€4,7-billion).
SABMiller, one of the world’s largest brewers, operates in over 60 countries across six continents, owning brands including Miller, Peroni Nastro Azzurro, Grolsch and Pilsner Urquell.
Molson Coors owns brands including Coors Light, Molson Canadian, Molson Dry, Carling, Coors, and Keystone Light. – AFP