British drinks giant Diageo Plc, the parent company for Red Stripe, is "very interested" in buying Sweden's Absolut vodka valued at US$6 billion, and Chief Executive Paul Walsh says he can see solutions to any possible anti-trust problems that arise.

"We are very interested in Absolut, and the feasibility will be linked to the level of interest," Walsh told Reuters in an interview on Wednesday.

He added the potential of the vodka brand will only be known when financial details are released.

"We can see solutions in all jurisdictions but the complexity will vary from market to market," he said of his interest in the world's number two vodka Absolut when Diageo already owns the best selling brand Smirnoff.

Jamaica's Wray & Nephew, which is owned by the Lascelles deMercado conglomerate, is the distributor of Absolut in Jamaica, securing the contract earlier this year.

Sweden has pledged to sell off Absolut's parent, the 90-year old state-owned Vin & Sprit (V&S), and four players are keen on buying, including Pernod Ricard, Fortune Brands, privately-owned Bacardi and Diageo.

Absolut is one of the biggest and fastest growing spirits brands in the world and is seen as the crown jewel of Sweden's largest-ever push to privatise state assets.

Around half of Absolut vodka is now sold in the U.S.

Walsh added that Diageo had not yet seen full details on V&S but he expected all likely buyers to be contacted in October by investment bank Morgan Stanley which has been charged with organising the sale of the Swedish business.

Walsh said Absolut was not a "must have" acquisition, but would be a good bolt-on deal, subject to seeing the financial data, which he expected in October.

He added that he had not visited Sweden in connection with the sale of Absolut.

Walsh would not comment on potential concerns from an Absolut deal by European and U.S. regulators, but analysts said Diageo may have more problems in Brussels than in Washington due to the differing way the regulators look at anti-trust issues.

The analysts added the U.S. tends to look more at pricing and a bottle of $25 Absolut is seen in a different category than Smirnoff at $14, while European regulators look at the whole market whether it be for spirits or vodka.

Diageo shares drifted off seven pence after Walsh's comments to close up just 0.2 per cent at £10.72 in a sharply higher London stock market boosted by a U.S. interest rate cut.

- Reuters