Tobacco.org

• Imperial boss to woo Castro over bid for cigar company  

Gareth Davies, chief executive of Imperial Tobacco, will travel to Cuba to woo Fidel Castro’s Government after a board recommendation of the group’s €12.6 billion (£8.5 billion) offer to acquire Altadis, the Franco-Spanish tobacco company, announced yesterday.

Mr Davies hopes to secure Cuban government support for the deal and persuade it not to exercise a change of control clause that it holds over Corporaci�n Habanos, a 50-50 joint venture which Altadis operates in Cuba that owns the country’s most famous cigar brands, including Montecristo, Cohiba, Romeo y Julieta and Partagas.

Mr Davies said yesterday the proposed entry of Habanos into 50 per cent British ownership would represent a “great addition” to Imperial’s existing portfolio of cigarette brands, including Lambert & Butler, Superkings and Embassy.

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