Carlsberg to acquire Britvic for £3.28BN in UK soft drinks expansion

08 Jul 2024 --- UK Pepsi bottler and soft drinks maker Britvic has agreed to a takeover bid of £3.28 billion (US$4.2 billion) from Carlsberg. The move is expected to allow the Danish brewer to expand its drinks bottling operations in the UK and beyond beer.

Ian Durant, a non-executive chair of Britvic, says the newly proposed deal “creates an enlarged international group well-placed to capture the growth opportunities in multiple drinks sectors.” 

Durant also says that Carlsberg’s agreement with PepsiCo provides the “combined group with a strong platform for continued success.”

The deal offered 1,290 pence per share for Britvic, with a small dividend that gives shareholders 1,315 pence per share.

In June, Britvic refused an improved cash takeover bid from Carlsberg offering 1,250 pence per share of the British soft drinks maker. It said at the time that the proposal “significantly undervalues Britvic and its current and future prospects.”

Carlsberg’s previous June 6 offer price of 1,200 pence per Britvic share was also declined.

Enhanced propositions
Carlsberg CEO Jacob Aarup-Andersen believes that the deal combines “Britvic’s high-quality soft drinks portfolio with Carlsberg’s strong beer portfolio and route-to-market capabilities, creating an enhanced proposition across the UK and markets in Western Europe.”

PepsiCo is key to the deal, as Britvic bottles and distributes PepsiCo brands in the UK and Ireland. 

Earlier this year, Carlsberg and PepsiCo agreed to waive a “change of control clause” in the bottling contract.

In other news, DS Smith has partnered with Carlsberg in Poland to introduce DS Smith Round Wrap to selected product lines. DS Smith Round Wrap is a multipack packaging solution that rounds corners and reduces CO2 emissions when compared to standard corrugated multipacks. 

Carlsberg also recently implemented an action roadmap with aluminum packager Ball, designed to drive sustainability progress.