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Japan Tobacco buys Russia’s largest cigarette maker for $1.6 bln

The transaction is anticipated to be closed by the third quarter of 2018

MOSCOW, March 16. /TASS/. Japan Tobacco Inc., a global leader in cigarette production, is going to become the owner of Russia’s top tobacco producer, Donskoy Tabak, after clinching a deal to buy it for a price tag of $1.6 bln, the company said on Friday.

"Japan Tobacco Inc. is announcing a transaction to purchase the Donskoy Tabak company, thus bolstering its position to number one in Russia and making it the world’s third largest on the tobacco market. The deal is estimated to be worth approximately 90 bln rubles ($1.6 bln)," the Japanese company said.

The transaction is anticipated to be closed by the third quarter of 2018 after its regulatory clearance.

Agrocom Group, the owner of Donskoy Tabak, validated the information about the company’s sale to Japan Tabacco, the group press service said.

"An agreement on the sale of Agrocom Group’s tobacco business (Donskoy Tabak) was signed on March 16. The next stage is the deal’s approval by the Russian Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) in due course," the press service said, adding that negotiations and preparations leading to the deal lasted for more than a year.

Russia’s FAS is still waiting for Japan Tobacco to file a petition on the matter, the regulator’s press service told TASS. "We have not yet received [any application]," the press office noted.