Anheuser Busch InBev buys 51 % of Dominican brewer CND for $1.237 bn

Anheuser Busch InBev, the world's largest brewer, yesterday agreed to buy a 51-per cent stake in Dominican brewer Cervecería Nacional Dominicana SA (CND) from two sellers for $1.237 billion.

Anheuser-Busch, whose flagship brand is the Budweiser beer, will acquire the stake in two separate transactions. It will buy a 41.76 per cent stake in CND from majority shareholder Grupo E Leon Jimenes for around $1 billion, and another 9.3 per cent from rival Heineken NV for $237 million.

The deal values the brewer of Presidente beer at about $2.5 billion.

E Leon Jimenes, the largest company in the Dominican Republic, currently owns 83.5 per cent of the Santo Domingo-based brewer.

''This strategic alliance with E.L.J. is a key step towards our dream of becoming the leading player in the Caribbean and Central America,'' said Alexandre Médicis, vice president for Hispanic Latin America at Anheuser-Busch InBev's subsidiary Ambev.

AmBev will nominate five members to the board of CND, and Leon Jimenes four. The combined business will include beer, malt and soft drinks operations in the Dominican Republic, Antigua, Saint Vincent and Dominica as well as exports to 16 other countries in the Americas and Europe.