UK drinks maker Britvic has reached an agreement with Carlsberg for a takeover worth £3.3bn.

Britvic, whose brands include J20 and Robinsons, accepted Carlsberg’s improved offer valuing each Britvic share at £13.15, after rejecting a series of bids by the Danish brewer in recent weeks, worth £12 and £12.50 per share.

Carlsberg said that Britvic’s board now considers the terms of the acquisition to be “fair and reasonable”, and that the board would “recommend unanimously” that shareholders vote in favour of the move.

The acquisition is also set to create a new a single integrated drinks company in the UK called Carlsberg Britvic.

Non-executive chair of Britvic, Ian Durant, commented that the proposed transaction creates a group that is “well-placed to capture the growth opportunities in multiple drinks sectors”.

“The board of directors believe that the strategic merits of this offer are compelling, and the offer also provides shareholders with the opportunity to receive the certainty of cash consideration that reflects the current strength and medium-term prospects of the Britvic business,” Durant said.

Carlsberg also has an exclusive licence with PepsiCo in the UK to make and sell Pepsi Max, 7UP, Rockstar Energy and Lipton Ice Tea.

As part of the new deal, the Danish group has secured agreement from PepsiCo to waive a clause in its Britvic contract that would have allowed it to cancel the arrangement on the event of a change of ownership.

Carlsberg CEO, Jacob Aarup-Andersen, added: “With this transaction, we are combining Britvic's high-quality soft drinks portfolio with Carlsberg’s strong beer portfolio and route-to-market capabilities, creating an enhanced proposition across the UK and markets in Western Europe.

“The proposed transaction is attractive for shareholders of Carlsberg, supporting our growth ambitions and being immediately earnings accretive and value accretive in year three. We are excited about expanding our global partnership with PepsiCo and believe that the longer-term opportunities will be very beneficial for both companies.”

The move also came on the same day that Carlsberg agreed to take full control of its joint venture with Marston’s in a separate deal worth £206m.

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