Glanbia Co-op won’t need to sell shares to fund buyout deal

Glanbia Co-op will not need to sell shares in Glanbia plc to fund the €307 million acquisition of the group's dairy arm.

The co-op, the plc’s largest shareholder, is buying the plc’s remaining 40 per cent stake in Glanbia Ireland, Glanbia’s spun-out dairy business, which produces the popular Avonmore, Kilmeaden and Premier brands.

When the deal was announced last month, the co-op indicated it would part-fund the transaction through the placement of plc shares.

However, it now says it is in a position, if required, to fund the transaction through a combination of existing cash resources and debt facilities or without divesting of shares in the company.

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The plc confirmed in a statement that “the proposed transaction is not contingent on the sale of plc shares by the co-op”.

Glanbia Ireland is a joint venture that is owned 60 per cent by Glanbia Co-op and 40 per cent by the plc.

It is the State’s largest dairy business, operating 11 processing plants and employing more than 2,000 staff. It generated €1.9 billion in revenue in 2020.

“The proposed transaction is subject to execution of legal contracts and receipt of all necessary shareholder approvals as well as any applicable regulatory approvals, with completion of the proposed transaction expected to occur in the first half of 2022,” the company said.

Glanbia managing director Siobhan Talbot said last month "the time was right to sell" and the deal marked the culmination of a process that began with the spinning out of Glanbia's processing business into a joint venture with the co-op in 2017.