Nigerian Breweries Plc has said that the final part of the transaction for the completion of the 80% acquisition of Distell Wines & Spirits Nigeria Limited will be completed in the first half of the year, which is between April and June 2024.

Hans Essaadi, Managing Director/CEO of Nigerian Breweries Plc, stated this at the pre-AGM press event in Lagos on Wednesday.

Essaadi said that following the shareholders’ approval at the Extra-ordinary General meeting in December 2023, the company has subsequently executed the transaction documents with Heineken Beverages (Holdings) Limited of South Africa for the acquisition of an 80% equity stake in Distell Wines and Spirits Nigeria and the acquisition of 100% of Heineken Beverages’ import business in Nigeria.

“The final part of the transaction is being completed at the South Africa end with the expectation that the transaction would be completed in full in the second quarter of this year.

This is a strategic acquisition that is in furtherance of our beyond beer agenda and which would provide us with a complimentary multi-category portfolio and strengthen our market share in the wider beverages market.

More importantly, it will help us to future-fit our business and enhance our long-term profitability through the addition of new products in the wines, spirits, and flavoured beverages categories,” he said.