Jet petrol stations in Germany sold for 2.5 billion euros!

Jet petrol stations in Germany sold for 2.5 billion euros!

The "Jet" petrol stations in Germany and Austria are faced with a billion-dollar sale. The American oil company Phillips 66 has decided to sell its almost 1,000 petrol stations, including 843 under the "Jet" brand for around 2.5 billion euros. Buyer is a consortium of financial investors consisting of Energy Equation Partners and Stonepeak, as reported [OE24]. With this strategic step, Phillips 66 expects that he can concentrate more on his core business in the refiner area.

The pressure on Phillips 66 comes from investors, in particular the hedge fund Elliott, who calls for a newcomer to the core business. In this context, the petrol stations are no longer part of the company's strategic orientation. The sale is part of a broader trend in which other oil companies also sell their petrol station networks in Germany, as the [Stuttgart-Aktuell] article emphasizes.

breakdown of the sale

The 970 petrol stations that are now sold should make an operational profit of 275 million euros this year. Nevertheless, Phillips will keep 66 35 percent of the shares in the petrol stations, which has come across criticism in TD Cowen analysts. They argue that the company has not completely handed over the petrol stations and thus emphasize strategic uncertainty.

The parent company not only sees the opportunity to generate liquid funds in the sale - it also expects cost savings. Similar sales campaigns have taken place in the industry in recent years, such as the sales of the “Esso” petrol pumps of Exxonmobil in 2017 or the sale of the OMV petrol stations. The “Total” petrol stations were also taken over by the Canadian alimentation for around 3.3 billion dollars in 2023.

market developments and trends

Within the petrol station market in Germany, there are numerous changes that also affect independent operators. The Federal Association of Free Petrol States e. V. (BFT) represents 522 medium -sized companies that operate over 2,760 petrol stations and make up almost every fifth petrol station in the German network. These petrol stations are not only providers of conventional fuels, but increasingly also of renewable energies, as is emphasized in the [BFT] industry study.

The members of the BFT actively campaign for greenhouse gas -neutral mobility and, in addition to electrical charging infrastructure, also integrate hydrogen as well as biogenic and synthetic fuels into their offer. The Efuel-Today initiative, which was founded together with the umbrella organization of medium-sized energy industry Germany (MEW), supports the use of synthetic fuels. These developments illustrate the need to adapt to the changing market conditions and to promote sustainable business models.

With the upcoming sale of the "Jet" petrol stations, it becomes clear how much the pressure on the oil industry grows to rethink and optimize their business practices in order to meet the challenges of the future.