Regulator sets S&N deadline

Carlsberg A/S and Heineken NV must make a formal offer for Scottish & Newcastle Plc, Britain's largest brewer, by January 21, the UK merger regulator said.

Carlsberg and Heineken, the biggest Danish and Dutch brewers respectively, must "announce a firm intention to make an offer" by that date or else say they don't intend to bid, the Takeover Panel said yesterday.

That would preclude them from bidding for six months without the regulator's consent.

Carlsberg and Amsterdam-based Heineken first said they were in talks to buy S&N in October. In November, the pair made a proposal of 750 pence a share, valuing the company at 7.3 billion pounds, which Edinburgh-based S&N rejected as too low. Carlsberg wants control of its Russian venture with S&N, while Heineken is after the UK operations.

The ruling "finally puts a timetable in place that the companies can work towards", said Simon Hales, an analyst at Dresdner Kleinwort in London.

The Takeover Panel said it made the ruling after "representations" from Scottish & Newcastle's advisers. All the companies agreed to go along with the decision.

Scottish & Newcastle said in a separate statement yesterday that it welcomes the regulator's move, while Carlsberg and Heineken said they were pleased a timetable has been set, and urged the British brewer to engage in talks.

Bloomberg News

(China Daily 12/19/2007 page16)