By Alessandro Parodi and Emma Rumney

January 6 (Reuters) - Anheuser-Busch InBev will buy back a 49.9% stake in its U.S. metal container plants for about $3 billion, the world's top brewer said on Tuesday, at a time of soaring aluminium costs due to tariffs.

The maker of Budweiser and Corona beers has spent much of the last decade trying to raise cash, rather than spend it, as it sought to reduce hefty debts built via acquisitions. 

It sold the minority stake in its U.S. packaging operation in 2020 to a group of investors led by private equity firm Apollo Global Management to help repay debts, with an option to buy the stake back after five years at a predetermined price. 

The brewer retained operational control of the business, spanning seven plants over six states, but entered a long-term supply agreement to meet its packaging needs. 

AB InBev shares were down 0.7% in midday trading.

BREWER SET TO USE REPURCHASE OPTION

The company said on Tuesday it would utilise the repurchase option, funded with cash, and expects to close the transaction in the first quarter. 

The deal will boost profits from the first year onwards, it said, declining to provide more details on its decision to repurchase the stake. Still, its statement pointed to the strategic role the factories play in securing supplies and containing costs. 

The purchase was the brewer's first significant one since it cut its debts to below a level seen as acceptable to investors at end-2024. 

It comes as beer sales decline in the U.S. as consumers rein in spending. Beer has also lost share to spirits in the United States, and there are signs that younger consumers' attitudes towards drinking are changing, some investors say.

Brewers, meanwhile, are also grappling with soaring prices of metals like aluminium used for cans. 

PREMIUMS AT RECORD PEAK FOR US ALUMINIUM BUYERS

Premiums for consumers buying aluminium on the U.S. physical market are at record highs due to import tariffs and tight supplies. 

Benchmark three-month aluminium on the London Metal Exchange hit $3,130 per metric on Tuesday, the highest since April 2022. 

President Donald Trump doubled tariffs on aluminium imports to 50% on June 4 to support investment in U.S. production of the metal, used in construction as well as power and packaging. 

AB InBev says hedging has helped shield its operations from the impact, but CEO Michel Doukeris told Reuters last year it could see bigger effects in 2026. 

Bernstein analyst Trevor Stirling said in a note that the cost AB InBev pays to buy packaging, plus the minority interest on the stake, are less than the nominal interest on the $3 billion, meaning the deal will boost earnings. 

It will only modestly reduce the scale of AB InBev's future buybacks, he added. Investors have made higher returns a key demand as AB InBev has progressed with debt reductions. 

(Reporting by Alessandro Parodi in Gdansk and Emma Rumney in London; additional reporting by Tom Daly in London; editing by Christian Schmollinger, Louise Heavens and Bernadette Baum)