March 12 (Bloomberg) -- Alliance Boots Holdings Ltd., the U.K. drugstore chain controlled by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., is considering a bid for Germanyâs Phoenix Group, four people familiar with the plan said. Mannheim, Germany-based Phoenix, which supplies about 43,000 European pharmacies, may be valued at about 4 billion euros ($5.1 billion), the people said, declining to be identified because the details are private. Nottingham, England-based Boots has made no final decision, the people said. The German drugs wholesaler is being sold to pay down debt owed by Adolf Merckle, Phoenixâs billionaire owner, who committed suicide in January. A takeover would increase competition with Bootsâ main rival Celesio AG, also of Germany, which would probably be prevented from buying Phoenix for antitrust reasons, the people said. âStable cash flows could be the key driver for an investment specifically in the current fragile market environment,â said Andreas Theisen, an analyst at WestLB AG in Dusseldorf. Phoenix, which operates in 23 countries, had sales of 21.6 billion euros in the year ended Jan. 31, 2008, about 30 percent of which were in Germany, according to its latest annual report. The Merckle family also controls generic-drugmaker Ratiopharm GmbH and cement company HeidelbergCement AG. Banks are jostling to manage the Phoenix sale, expected to be awarded shortly. The Merckle familyâs VEM Vermoegensverwaltung GmbH today named Hans-Joachim Ziems as chief restructuring officer of the investment unitâs assets, the next step in the sale process. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=alPRLlCfMaDU&refer=home There must be some cheap financing out there...