Court OKs Albertsons Bid to Purchase Remaining Haggen Stores

A bankruptcy court in Delaware has approved Albertsons' bid to purchase the remaining Haggen stores for approximately $106 million, a move that brings the Bellingham-based grocer's bankruptcy proceeding to an end.

The deal is slated to close in the next several weeks, according to a statement by Albertsons spokesman Brian Dowling.

The acquisition, which PG first reported earlier this month, includes 29 stores in Washington and Oregon, of which 15 will continue to operate as Haggen stores. The other 14 locations will operate under the Albertsons umbrella.

In a statement, the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW), which represents Haggen employees, noted it was pleased with the deal.

"Haggen will assume, assign and transfer relevant labor agreements to Albertsons," the statement said. "This means that every UFCW member who works within these 29 Haggen stores will keep their job, seniority status, wages, earned sick leave, vacation days, paid time off and personal holidays."

Haggen purchased 146 stores from those divested as a result of the Safeway-Albertsons merger in 2014. After struggling to find its footing, the grocer was plagued by a series of lawsuits, announced plans to shutter some stores in August 2015 and ultimately filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September.

Haggen did not immediately respond to a request for comment.