Total sells UK retail, fuel distribution assets

June 21, 2011
Total SA signed a sale and purchase agreement to sell most of its marketing assets in the UK, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man to Rontec Investments LLP, the company reported.

Eric Watkins
OGJ Oil Diplomacy Editor

LOS ANGELES, June 21 -- Total SA signed a sale and purchase agreement to sell most of its marketing assets in the UK, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man to Rontec Investments LLP, the company reported.

The assets include the French company’s UK retail outlet network, including 810 Total-branded service stations; Butler heating oil business and associated logistics systems; and businesses in the Channel Islands and Isle of Man.

The Rontec Investments consortium comprises Snax 24, one of the leading independent forecourt groups in the UK; Grovepoint, a London-based independent principal investment firm; and Investec, an international specialist bank and asset manager.

Total said the transaction, which is expected to complete later this year, is in line with the group’s strategy of “rationalizing its downstream portfolio in Europe” and that the sale process for its refining assets in the UK “is ongoing.”

Meanwhile, in addition to its exploration and production operations, Total said it will retain a direct market presence in the UK through its lubricants, aviation fuels, special fluids, and chemicals businesses.

In February, in line with its plan to reduce European refining, Total announced that it would sell its share of Spanish oil company CEPSA to IPIC, a wholly owned unit of Abu Dhabi.

Total said the sale is for all of its nearly 49% stake in CEPSA, Spain’s second largest oil company, with refining capacity of 528,000 b/d, a network of about 1,750 service stations in Spain and Portugal, and hydrocarbons production of about 55,000 b/d. (OGJ Online, Feb. 16, 2011).

Contact Eric Watkins at [email protected].