damn...!

Belgian supermarket operator Delhaize Group (BEELB) (DEG) said that it has signed a non-binding letter of intent to buy a substantial majority of BI-LO’s assets for $425 million.

BI-LO is a food retailer currently operating 214 stores in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia in the U.S.

On Mar. 23, BI-LO filed for bankruptcy in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of South Carolina. The assets to be included in the deal are estimated to have realized over $2 billion in sales in 2008, Delhaize said.

The supermarket chain employs approximately 15,500 people.

Upon completion of the deal, Delhaize will integrate the BI-LO assets into its Food Lion chain. The chain is based mainly in the southeastern part of the U.S. where it has some 1,300 stores and around 74,000 associates, operating under the names of Food Lion, Bloom, Bottom Dollar, Harveys and Reid’s.