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LONDON, Oct 13 (Reuters) Indian entrepreneur Vijay Mallya is in Scotland for talks with Whyte&Mackay which may lead to him making a bid for the 600 million pound ($1.1 billion) whisky distiller, sources close to the situation said on Friday.

Mallya, who owns India's drinks-to-airline conglomerate UB, was meeting Whyte &Mackay's chairman and majority shareholder Vivian Imerman at the distiller's central Scotland bottling plant in Grangemouth for wide-ranging talks, the sources added.

Earlier this week, South African born businessman Imerman told Reuters he was currently evaluating more than one unsolicited bid which may lead to the sale of part of the business, the whole of the business, or a strategic alliance.

Mallya's plane has landed in Scotland for his first ever visit to the country, and the talks could concern a strategic alliance or distribution deal as well as the sale of part or whole of Whyte&Mackay, the sources added.

A Whyte&Mackay spokeswoman would not comment on the nature of the talks in Scotland.

''These talks between Vijay Mallya and Vivian Imerman are continuing to evaluate the strategic options for Whyte&Mackay,'' the spokeswoman added.

Imerman has said the Scottish whisky group, which makes Whyte&Mackay blended scotch together with Isle of Jura and Dalmore single malt whiskies, is valued at 600 million pounds, and it was in talks with UB in addition to others over bids for the group.

The valuation of Whyte&Mackay, which was sold for only 208 million pounds in 2001 to a group of investors including Imerman, includes 200 million pounds worth of aged whisky stocks, the sources said.

Mallya, who has a controlling stake in India's top beer company, Kingfisher brewer United Breweries Ltd , and owns a spirits business and also founded Kingfisher Airlines, is interested in a UK distillery in order to use its distribution network to sell his Indian whiskies and rums in Europe.

''In the course of discussions with them for long-term supply of scotch, we told them that if they are sellers, then we would be interested in buying. The discussion has not gone beyond that,'' UB's Chief Financial Officer Ravi Nedungadi told Reuters earlier this week.

Imerman and his brother-in-law, Iranian-born property tycoon Robert Tchenguiz, took full control of Whyte&Mackay last year and refinanced the group with Imerman now owning two-thirds and Tchenguiz one-third of the company.

REUTERS DKS BS1839