Nov. 7 (Bloomberg) -- InBev NV, the brewer that's buying Anheuser-Busch Cos. for $52 billion, declined to comment on a report that German market leader Dr. August Oetker KG may buy its local unit and Beck's beer brand.

The division may be worth about 2 billion euros ($2.6 billion) to 2.5 billion euros, said Paul Hofman, an analyst at Credit Agricole Cheuvreux in Amsterdam. A disposal also would include the Diebels brand and would be intended to raise funds for the takeover, German weekly Lebensmittel-Zeitung said today on its Web site, without giving a source for the information.

Closely held Dr. Oetker, which has activities from food to shipping, has said it wants to enlarge its 15 percent share of Germany's beer market. InBev has singled out five units lying outside its main divisions that will be sold to help repay debt more quickly, Chief Executive Carlos Brito said yesterday. The takeover will close by the year's end as planned, he also said.

``InBev might seek to realize cash from parts of its German operation, but Beck's seems unlikely,'' said Rob Mann, an analyst at Collins Stewart in London with a ``hold'' rating on the stock. ``It's been one of very few recent brand-building highlights, is one of only two `global' brands in the existing pre-Bud portfolio, and is also a growing brand in the U.S. market.''

While asset sales are under consideration, no comments can be made for now regarding units that might be affected, InBev spokeswoman Marianne Amssoms said in an e-mailed statement. Joerg Schillinger, a spokesman for Bielefeld, Germany-based Dr. Oetker, declined to comment by telephone.

`Tough Beer Market'

``That they would want to sell Germany is not a major surprise,'' said Hofman, who has an ``outperform'' recommendation on InBev. ``It's a tough beer market and always has been, with a lot of excess capacity.''

InBev, the brewer of Bass ale and Czech beer Staropramen, sold about 7.5 million hectoliters (6.3 million barrels) of Beck's in 2007. The brew is the No. 1 German beer in the world, the company's Web site shows.

Beer accounted for 95 percent of the 14.4 million hectoliters of beverages sold last year by Dr. Oetker's Radeberger Gruppe unit, the company's Web site shows. Jever and Berliner Kindl are among its brands.

The Belgian brewer controlled about 9 percent of total German beer sales last year, the second-largest share. InBev entered the market by purchasing Diebels in 2001, followed by Beck's a year later.

InBev has received letters of interest in the assets to be sold, the CEO said yesterday. Funding for the takeover includes $7 billion for use until disposals take place.

To contact the reporters on this story: Holger Elfes in Dusseldorf at helfes@bloomberg.net; Meera Bhatia in Oslo at mbhatia2@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: November 7, 2008 09:36 EST