Tesco agrees deal with Yucaipa to exit US Tesco has finally drawn a line under its troubled expansion into the US, but at a further cost to Britain's biggest retailer of £150m, on top of an earlier £1bn writedown. Tesco said it had reached agreement with Yucaipa, the investment vehicle of US billionaire Ron Burkle, to offload 150 Fresh & Easy stores, as well as its food production and distribution centre. Under the terms of the deal, Tesco will lend the new business £80m, secured against the production and distribution centre at Riverside, east of Los Angeles. The costs associated with closing about 50 stores, with the loss of 400 full-time and about 600 part-time and temporary staff, will take the total cash outflow to £150m. Mr Burkle said Yucaipa, which owns US supermarket chain Wild Oats, planned to continue to build Fresh & Easy into a "next-generation convenience retail experience." However, Jim Prevor, who runs the Perishable Pundit blog, said he believed that Yucaipa's interest was primarily related to the property values of the Fresh & Easy assets. "Basically what they are trying to do is play on Tesco's desperate desire to get out," he said. The deal comes a month after the talks appeared to have foundered, with the most likely option appearing to be a closure of the US business. The sticking point had been Tesco's desire for a clean break from the US. Tesco said on Tuesday that it would have "no ongoing financial exposure" on completion of the sale. Philip Clarke, Tesco's chief executive, said the deal represented "the best outcome for Tesco shareholders." He added that it was "an orderly and efficient exit from the US market, while protecting the jobs of more than 4,000 colleagues at Fresh & Easy." Clive Black, analyst at Shore Capital, said: "It is fundamentally good news that Tesco has managed to close the door on this adventure, but this isn't getting out cash neutral. They are having to pay £150m. That leaves a sour taste in the mouth. Tesco will receive warrants that, subject to certain performance criteria, could be exchanged for 32.5 per cent of the new business. A deal to extricate Tesco from the US draws a line under the expansion, spearheaded by former chief executive Sir Terry Leahy, which Mr Clarke said had "failed." In December Mr Clarke announced a review of Fresh & Easy, and in April the company wrote off £1bn of capital after the decision to exit the lossmaking business. It also represents a further reshaping of the retailer's international business. Last month Tesco said it was in exclusive talks with China Resources Enterprise about forming a joint venture in the country that will see Tesco significantly cut its exposure to the world's second-largest economy.