Heineken held talks to buy Femsa

Mon 26 Oct, 2009 01:33

PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - Dutch brewer Heineken has held discussions to buy the brewing operations of Mexican conglomerate Femsa , the Financial Times reported on Sunday in its electronic edition.

Citing "people close to the situation," the FT said Heineken was seriously interested in the Femsa beer business because it would mark its last opportunity to major foothold in Latin America.

Heineken and Femsa were not immediately available for comment.

Heineken would be unlikely to be able to afford to bid for all of Femsa's business, including its stores and Coca-Cola Femsa, the FT reported.

Beer heavyweight SABMiller Plc (SAB.L) is seen as a front-runner to buy Mexico's No. 2 brewery, owned by FEMSA, Reuters previously reported.

(Reporting by Jessica Hall; Editing by Richard Chang)