REGIONAL brewer Wolverhampton & Dudley's restructuring plans are well advanced.

The brewer, which has agreed the sale of its Camerons Lion Brewery in Hartlepool to Castle Eden, reported a 28 per cent rise in first-half profits.

Pre-tax profits rose to £26.6m before exceptionals in the six months to March 31, compared with £20.8m in the same period last year.

The brewer said it had already received "strong expressions of interest" for 130 pubs it wants to sell to help raise more than £200m for investors.

An early and successful sale of its Pitcher & Piano chain was more than likely given indicative offers received by last Friday, the brewer added.

Wolves has also begun consultation with staff who may lose their jobs as a result of its decision to streamline its brewery operations, including the Camerons sale to Castle Eden.

Castle Eden plans to sell its existing site to house-builder Persimmon, merging all its operations at the Camerons site.

That sale is conditional on Persimmon being given permission for the redevelopment of the site for housing.

Wolves, which brews both Pedigree ale and Harp Irish lager, announced its restructuring plans last month.

It said it would return £200m to shareholders by selling off the pubs and closing two of its four breweries and improving its core business.

The plans came just as the City was licking its lips at the prospect of a bidding war for the brewer.

Leisure entrepreneur Robert Breare and Hartlepool-based pubs group Pubmaster were both poised to battle it out for the brewer. Mr Breare has since pulled out.

Pubmaster has until June 1 to table a bid, and Wolves' chief executive Ralph Findlay said he still did not know whether a formal approach would be made.

He said: "The timetable they are working to is that they must have an offer with us by June 1, and we are providing them with all the information they need."

Mr Findlay said that despite the disruption caused by speculation over a bid for the brewer, Wolves had made "good progress" during the first half.

Shareholders will receive an interim dividend of 9p per share, up 5.9 per cent on last time.