Sobeys Completes Safeway Acquisition

STELLARTON, Nova Scotia — Sobeys here on Monday said it had completed its $5.8 billion purchase of Safeway Canada.

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"This is a great day in the 106-year history of Sobeys," Paul D. Sobey, president and chief executive officer of Sobeys parent Empire Co., said in a statement. “The addition of Canada Safeway represents a unique and highly strategic opportunity to leverage Sobeys' modern asset base and provides us with a new and exciting platform for growth as we move forward."

Safeway, Pleasanton, Calif., said it would realize around $4 billion after taxes and expenses as a result of the deal. The company Monday said those funds, as well as $400 million to $450 million in U.S. tax benefits related to the exit of the Chicago market, will be used to pay down $2 billion of debt, with the majority of the remainder to be used to buy back stock.

Read more: Sobeys Must Divest 23 Stores: Regulator