Greene King may get CMA approval for Spirit Pub takeover

26th May 2015 13:49

The UK's Competition and Markets Authority said on Tuesday that it has considered the undertakings offered by brewer and pubs operator Greene King in respect of its acquisition of Spirit Pub Co and that it may be willing to give the stamp of approval to the deal.Chief executive Rooney Anand said: "This is a great result. The CMA has confirmed that only a small number of pubs will have to be sold in order for us to complete the acquisition of Spirit, which means that both the profit impact and business disruption are minimised." "We believe this outcome is fair and sensible and ensures we can create the UK's leading pub company and deliver significant financial benefits to both sets of shareholders."In its initial investigation into the £773.6m takeover, the CMA had found that about one third of the companies' combined 3,000 pubs overlapped in some way, with 16 locations in particular where minimal competition existed. The CMA had concluded that competition could be damaged by the merger, which in turn could result in higher prices or poorer customer service.