(ECMMagazine) - Anheuser-Busch InBev NV expects to cut about 3 percent of its enlarged workforce in the three years after its takeover of SABMiller Plc as it seeks to maximize savings from the combination of the world’s largest brewers.

The reductions will be implemented gradually and in phases, the companies said in documents related to the acquisition published Friday. About 5,500 positions are likely to be eliminated, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be identified because the information is private.

The job cuts will form part of the $1.4 billion of annual savings that AB InBev has said it’s seeking from the takeover. Brewers of mass-market beer are trying to cut production and distribution costs as they lose market share to smaller independent brands in Europe and North America. SABMiller last year doubled its own savings target to $1.05 billion by 2020.