19 Marston's pubs in Wales have been sold as part of multi-million pound deal

Marston's pubs across Wales have been reportedly purchased by a rival pub group, sources say.

A list leaked to StokeOnTrent Live reveals 137 Marston's-owned pubs across the UK that have allegedly been sold to Admiral Taverns - including 19 boozers in Wales.

However, when approached by our sister title, StokeonTrentLive, Admiral Taverns said they could neither confirm nor deny the list was accurate.

CEO Chris Jowsey said: “We are delighted to be welcoming all 137 of our new pubs to Admiral. We take a very supportive approach in the industry, which sets us apart form the competition and our team are very proud of the long-term working relationships we have with our licensees.

"We are truly passionate about community pubs and have been making significant investments across our estate over the last few years to put these local businesses in the best possible position to thrive. 

Pub facts

He added: “As a business, this approach has earnt us industry recognition with the Group awarded Best Leased and Tenanted Pub Company in 2019 and we have also been consistently highly rated by licensees in the pub industry’s independent annual Tenant Track survey, regularly exceeding the scores of all our national peers.”

Market Taverns in Brecon is believed to be one of the Welsh pubs (Google)

The pubs in Wales that are said to have been bought by Admiral Taverns are:

• Cross Foxes, Pentre Broughton, Wrexham
• Mechanic Arms Hotel, Pentre
• Penbont Inn, Llanrug 
• Black Lion, Aberystwyth
• Golden Lion, Coedpoeth
• Prince of Wales, Bridgend 
• Gronant Inn, Prestatyn
• Castle Inn, Rhuddlan, Rhyl
• Long Pull, Wrexham
• Goat Hotel, Bala
• Castle, Shotton
• Mountain View Hotel, Conwy
• Branch, Holyhead
• Market Taverns, Brecon
• Stag and Pheasant, Carmarthen
• Boars Head, Narbeth
• Ship Inn, Haverfordwest
• George Inn, Bethesda
• Boatyard, Bangor

Prince of Wales, in Bridgend is said to be another of the Welsh pubs involved (Google)

Marston's, which has more than 1,500 pubs across the UK, explained they've reached agreement for the disposal of 137 pubs for £44.9 million to Admiral Taverns, as part of their plan to reduce debt, in-part through the "disposal" of non-core assets.

Ralph Findlay, Marston's CEO, said: “We are making good progress with our plans to reduce our net debt by £200 million by 2023 in part through the disposal of non-core assets.

"We are encouraged by the level of market interest that this portfolio of pubs has attracted."

Carmarthen's Stag and Pheasant is also said to be involved in the deal (Google)

He added: "This further underpins our confidence in achieving the accelerated £70 million disposal proceeds target that we have set ourselves for the current year.

"We remain focused on our stated objective of reducing our net debt by £200 million by 2023 or earlier, and thereafter operating a high quality business generating consistent net cashflow, after dividends, of at least £50 million per annum.”

Marston's has been contacted to confirm the list of Welsh pubs.