Shepherd Neame has agreed to buy 13 freehold pubs located in the South East of England from Punch Taverns for up to £14.8 million in cash.

Shepherd Neame has agreed to buy 13 freehold pubs located in the South East of England from Punch Taverns for up to £14.8 million in cash. The deal, which includes some pub-specific assets, will be financed through a new £15 million credit line from Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking Group.

The company said its corporate strategy was to drive the quality of its pub estate through strategic acquisitions as well as through the disposal of low-yielding pubs and unlicensed properties. The Punch Taverns deal is expected to generate EBITDA of more than £1.9 million in the first full financial year to June 2010, with a positive impact on earnings.

The three managed houses and ten leased pubs will go some way to strengthening the company’s footprint in the Greater London and Surrey areas, bringing Shepherd Neame’s estate to 378 pubs, of which 49 are managed pubs and 329 are tenanted and leased pubs.

This acquisition comes on the back of the Central London purchases of the Jamaica Wine House and the Westminster Arms. Disposals in the year to date have totalled £7.2 million.

Chief executive Jonathan Neame said: “This is an excellent opportunity to acquire a package of high-quality individual pubs within our core trading area. The acquisition is in line with our strategy and will further improve the quality of our pub estate.”