21st Dec 2007 11:30
SABMiller PLC21 December 2007 SABMILLER AND MOLSON COORS SIGN DEFINITIVE AGREEMENT TO FORM MILLERCOORS U.S. JOINT VENTURE Transaction Remains on Track to Close by Mid-2008 ______________________________________________ 21 December 2007 (London and Denver) -- SABMiller plc (SAB.L) and Molson CoorsBrewing Company (NYSE: TAP; TSX) today announced that they have signed thedefinitive transaction agreement for the combination of the U.S. and Puerto Ricooperations of their respective subsidiaries, Miller and Coors, into MillerCoorsLLC, the joint venture that they announced on 9 October 2007. Graham Mackay, Chief Executive of SABMiller, said, "Today's announcement is animportant step forward towards completing the MillerCoors joint venture, acombination that will ultimately allow us to better meet the needs ofdistributors, retailers and consumers in the U.S. marketplace by providinggreater choice, product availability and increased innovation." Leo Kiely, Chief Executive of Molson Coors, said, "This combination of our twohighly complementary U.S. businesses creates a stronger brewer and allows us tobetter compete. We look forward to closing the deal in mid-2008 and arecooperating fully with the regulatory clearance process." The closing of the transaction is subject to obtaining clearance from U.S.competition authorities, certain other regulatory clearances and any requiredthird-party consents. The Miller business and the Coors business will continueto be conducted separately and in the ordinary course until completion of thetransaction. Overview of SABMiller SABMiller plc is one of the world's largest brewers with brewing interests ordistribution agreements in over 60 countries across six continents. The group'sbrands include premium international beers such as Miller Genuine Draft, PeroniNastro Azzurro and Pilsner Urquell, as well as an exceptional range of marketleading local brands. Outside the USA, SABMiller plc is also one of the largestbottlers of Coca-Cola products in the world. In the year ended 31 March 2007,the group reported $3,154 million adjusted pre-tax profit and revenue of $18,620million. SABMiller plc is listed on the London and Johannesburg stock exchanges. For more information on SABMiller plc, visit the company's website: www.sabmiller.com. Overview of Molson Coors Molson Coors is one of the world's leading brewers. It brews, markets and sellsa portfolio of premium quality brands such as Coors Light, Molson Canadian,Molson Dry, Carling, Coors, and Keystone Light. It operates in Canada, throughMolson Canada; in the U.S., through Coors Brewing Company; in the UK, Europe andAsia, through Coors Brewers Limited. For more information on Molson CoorsBrewing Company, visit the company's website, www.molsoncoors.com. Overview of Miller Miller produces, markets and sells the Miller portfolio of brands in the U.S.The Miller business to be contributed to the joint venture (the "MillerBusiness") does not include the sales of Miller brands outside the U.S., butdoes include the sale of other SABMiller brands in the U.S. Overview of Coors Coors produces, markets and sells the Coors portfolio of brands in the U.S. andPuerto Rico, which is managed as an integral part of the U.S. business, and alsoholds 50% interests in the Rocky Mountain Metal Corporation and Rocky MountainBottle Corporation joint ventures. The Coors business to be contributed to thejoint venture (the "Coors Business") will not include the sales of Coors brandsoutside the U.S. and Puerto Rico. The business to be contributed does includethe sale of other Molson Coors brands in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. This announcement is for information only and does not constitute an offer or aninvitation to acquire or dispose of any securities or investment advice or aninducement to enter into investment activity. This announcement does notconstitute an offer to sell or issue or the solicitation of an offer to buy oracquire the securities of SABMiller or Molson Coors (the "Companies") in anyjurisdiction. The distribution of this announcement may be restricted by law. Persons intowhose possession this announcement comes are required by the Companies to informthemselves about and to observe any such restrictions. Forward-Looking Statements This press release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning ofthe U.S. federal securities laws, and language indicating trends, suchas "anticipated" and "expected". It also includes financial information, ofwhich, as of the date of this press release, the Companies' independent auditorshave not completed their review. Although the Companies believe that theassumptions upon which their respective financial information andtheir respective forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, they cangive no assurance that these assumptions will prove to be correct. Importantfactors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Companies'projections and expectations are disclosed in Molson Coors' filings with theSecurities and Exchange Commission and in SABMiller's annual report and accountsfor the year ended 31 March 2007 and in other documents which are available onSABMiller's website at www.sabmiller.com. These factors include, among others,changes in consumer preferences and product trends; price discounting by majorcompetitors; failure to realize anticipated results from synergy initiatives; failure to obtain regulatory consents or other third party approvals; andincreases in costs generally. All forward-looking statements in this pressrelease are expressly qualified by such cautionary statements and by referenceto the underlying assumptions. Neither SABMiller nor Molson Coors undertakes toupdate forward-looking statements relating to their respective businesses,whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. NeitherSABMiller nor Molson Coors accepts any responsibility for any financialinformation contained in this press release relating to the business oroperations or results or financial condition of the other or their respectivegroups. # # # Contacts For further information, please contact: SABMiller / Miller Tel: +44 20 7659 0100/ 414 931 2000 Nigel Fairbrass Media Relations, SABMiller Mob: +44 7799 894265 Molson Coors / Coors Kabira Hatland Media Relations, Molson Coors Mob: 720-317-4172 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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