British brewer Scottish & Newcastle (S&N) has agreed to be taken over by Heineken and Carlsberg. The Dutch and Danish brewers have offered 800 pence per share, equivalent to €10.4bn.

Heineken will pay around 46% of the takeover sum and will fund its part of the deal through a loan, news agencies said.
S&N rejected three previous offers for being too low. ‘We are recommending this bid to our shareholders because it properly reflects the value of our company. It reflects our perspective for growth,’ said S&N CEO Brian Stewart.
If the takeover is successful, Heineken will be the biggest brewer in the UK and have a strong position on the European market, the company said in a statement.
‘This is an extremely important strategic step for us,’ said Heineken company chairman François van Boxmeer.
Heineken will acquire S&N’s British operations, including Strongbow cider and John Smith’s beer. It will also take over S&N’s operations in Portugal, Ireland and Belgium as well as operations in the US and India.
Heineken and Carlsberg announced bigger expected cost savings from the deal and aim for an annual saving of €162m as a result of synergy, news agency Reuters said.
The deal still needs to be approved by the European Commission and other competition bodies and is expected to be completed in the second quarter of this year.