London, Sept 22 - Japanese brewer Suntory has made a binding bid for soft drinks maker Orangina Schweppes, its private equity owners said, in a sign buy-out houses may find it easier to exit investments.
Blackstone Group and Lion Capital did not mention a price for the offer, but reports have said Suntory -- itself the target of a takeover bid from Kirin -- will offer more for Orangina than the original $2.6 billion price tag.
Blackstone and Lion declined to comment on Tuesday.
Orangina is the second largest European producer in the still soft drinks market, having grown volumes and stepped up investment in trade and consumer marketing, the private equity firms said in a statement.
Blackstone and Lion bought the eponymous producer of Orangina and Schweppes -- whose cocktail of brands also includes Snapple, Oasis and La Casera -- in 2006 before debt markets slammed shut and buy-outs ground to a virtual halt.
Any deal will provide a high spot for the European private equity industry which has been struggling to find buyers for its businesses since the onset of the credit crisis. But it is likely to indicate a desire by Japanese drinks producers to expand overseas as much as a return of deal appetite.
Japanese drinks firms are keen to enter international markets as beer sales decline in their rapidly ageing home market, where the population is projected to fall by a third in coming decades.
Blackstone and Lion said social, regulatory and legal steps will need to be completed before they decide whether or not to accept the bid.