United Kingdom: Britain's competition watchdog has blocked a deal by two top British brewers to buy the draught beer dispensing assets of a rival on Friday, March 11, according to Reuters report. The Competition Commission said it would not allow Serviced Dispense Equipment Ltd (SDEL), a company set up by Scottish & Newcastle Plc, Britain's largest brewer, and Denmark's Carlsberg, to buy the technical services function of Coors Brewers Ltd.

Scottish & Newcastle and Carlsberg combined their operations to provide equipment to British pubs to dispense draught beer last year, forming SDEL. SDEL agreed in August to buy Coors' British pub dispensing equipment and provide maintenance for Coors in Britain. "After considering alternatives, the Competition Commission has concluded that the only effective remedy to address the anti-competitive outcome is to prohibit the merger," it said in a statement on Friday.

There are around 149,000 outlets supplying draught beer in Britain, the majority of which require services provided by SDEL, such as coolers and lines running from the cellar to the bar. "By blocking this merger it is more likely that a fully functioning market for technical services equipment and related servicing will develop. This will be good news for both pub companies and their customers," commission chairman Paul Geroski said in a statement.

12 March, 2005