Brewery giant, Heineken has turned down an £82bn merger proposal by rival firm SABMiller. The business previously rejected a £27bn offer made by SABMiller around two weeks ago. The refusal was on the grounds that its controlling shareholder intends to keep the company independent.
The Heineken and Amstel beer manufacturer said it consulted with its majority shareholder and concluded that SABMiller’s proposal was 'non-actionable'. “The Heineken family has informed SABMiller, Heineken and Heineken Holding of its intention to preserve the heritage and identity of Heineken as an independent company,” it said in a statement.
The founding family owns just over 50% of Heineken via Heineken Holding. A further 12.5% is owned by Mexico’s FEMSA.
SAB, owner of the Foster’s, Pilsner and Urquell brands, has itself been rumoured as a likely takeover target by the likes of Anheuser-Busch InBev, which is best known for the likes of Budweiser, Corona and Stella Artois.
Drinks producers are increasingly keen to consolidate their operations in order to minimise costs associated by distribution whilst maximising prices by leveraging their market share.