Under the deal, Asahi Group will buy SABMiller's beer assets in Romania, the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia.
This is Asahi's biggest-ever overseas deal and is part of the group's strategy to expand its presence in Europe, it said in a press release.
"Asahi’s strategy is to enhance its cash generating power through its international business by maximizing synergies with its existing business in Europe, the second largest business platform next to its domestic operations, along with merging the brand power and cost competitiveness it has cultivated in Japan," Asahi said.
The sale is conditional upon European Commission's regulatory approval and is expected to be closed in the first half of 2017, AB InBev said in a separate press release on Tuesday.
In May, AB InBev said it plans to take over SABMiller, offering to divest the Central and Eastern European assets of SABMiller, including its assets in Romania, in order to obtain the European Commission's approval for the first stage of the planned takeover of the London-based brewer. The $104 billion (98 billion euro) merger of the two beer giants was approved by the Commission in May and was completed in October.
SABMiller operates three factories in Romania and its portfolio includes the following brands: Ursus, Timisoreana, Ciucas, Stejar, Azuga, Redd's, Peroni Nastro Azzurro, Grolsch, Miller and Pilsner Urquell.
Asahi Group Holdings is a global beer, spirits, soft drinks and food company founded in 1949 in Tokyo, Japan.
AB InBev, which has 150,000 employees based in 26 countries worldwide, posted revenues of $43.6 billion (38.3 billion euro) in 2015. It owned several beer factories in Romania until 2009, which it sold to private equity fund CVC Capital Partners. The fund created a new entity called StarBev, which was acquired in 2013 by Molson Coors Central Europe, one of the biggest brewers in Central and Eastern Europe. Currently, Molson Coors has a factory in Ploiesti county, in southern Romania where it makes several local brands such as Bergenbier and Noroc, and three beer brands under InBEv's license: Stella Artois, Beck's and LowenBrau. (source: seenews.com)
