AB Inbev ponders sale of Tennent’s beer brand

Anheuser-Busch InBev could be ready to sell its Tennent’s beer brand in a bid to reduce debt.

Tennents Lager

According to reports, investment bank Lazard has been brought in to find a buyer for the brand which is thought to be worth about £85m.

Tennent’s has about 60% of the Scottish larger market and is title sponsor of the annual T in the Park music festival.

A spokeswoman for AB Inbev declined to comment.

AB Inbev is thought to have taken on considerable debt when it formed from the merger of Inbev and Anheuser-Busch last year.

Last month, it withdrew Australian beer brand Castlemaine XXXX from the UK market after deciding not to renew its UK distribution deal with XXXX owner Lion Nathan because of “challenging market conditions” in the UK market.

In April, Andreas Hilger was named UK marketing director for the merged businesses. Hilger, who joined last year as Inbev’s UK marketing director, now reports to Stuart MacFarlane, who was named president of the UK AB InBev business in March.