Morrisons is widely expected to win the battle for the takeover of faltering convenience store chain McColl's.

Morrisons, the fourth-biggest supermarket chain in the UK, has been locked in bidding war for McColl’s against EG Group, the petrol station business owned by the Issa brothers - who also own supermarket rival Asda.

McColl's was on the brink of going into administration, but a “pre-pack” deal will allow the business to immediately be sold to the new owner.

Neither bidder has so far commented on the final outcome of the sale process that was finalised over the weekend.

McColl's employs around 16,000 people across over 1,000 convenience stores.

Morrisons is already McColl's key wholesale supplier, and it had previously formed an alliance with the business to convert hundreds of McColl's shops to Morrisons Daily-branded convenience stores. There are already over 200 of these re-branded outlets operating.

News of McColl’s impending collapse broke last week. Factors affecting the potential takeover of the business including shouldering its £170 million bank debts, and taking responsibility for the company's pension scheme that has around 2,000 members.

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