Business
Chevron completes sale of Caribbean assets
Chevron has concluded the sale of its fuels marketing and aviation business in The Bahamas, Cayman Islands and Turks and Caicos to a French multinational energy company.
Vitogaz, a wholly-owned subsidiary of RUBIS, will acquire a network of 39 retail stations, eight aviation facilities, six fuel terminals, one joint operation at the Lynden Pindling International Airport in The Bahamas and a commercial and industrial fuels business.
The deal, first announced by Guardian Business back in November, has undergone the appropriate approvals, according to Hector Infante, public affairs manager for Chevron in the Caribbean.
“Chevron does not disclose information regarding the price of the sale of these transactions,” he said.
These assets, according to a release from Chevron, are in addition to another sale by Chevron in July 2011, whereby RUBIS purchased 174 service stations operating under the Texaco brand, an equity interest in an associated refinery operation, propriety and joint-venture terminals and aviation facilities.
While the oil and gas giant continues its retreat from the region, French multinational RUBIS is projecting strong growth in 2012 based on these acquisitions.
The company’s 2011 annual results, obtained by Guardian Business, reveals a “new record” fiscal year with 30 percent growth in volume and 27 percent in net profit.
In 2011, the report also stated that RUBIS spent nearly US$331 million in investments and acquisitions, either paid or initiated, providing further clues into the price tag of assets in the Caribbean.
The “promising integration” of the Caribbean zone purchases positions RUBIS as one of the leading independent operators in the region, the report added, with acquisitions in The Bahamas specifically listed as a driver of revenue going forward.
“Following on from these recent years, opportunities for external growth continue to appear, providing the group with new prospects for growth,” it stated.
The response to the high-profile acquisition has been met with less enthusiasm among gas retailers here at home.
Philip Kemp, the president of the Bahamas Petroleum Retailers Association (BPRA), has expressed a measure of concern as RUBIS takes the reins. Gas retailers have experienced their fair share of problems dealing with Chevron, he told Guardian Business, and worries persist this trend will continue.
Source: Nassau Guardian