Caltex ready to fill up at Woolworths stations

Caltex

While Caltex is still tipped as the front runner to buy Woolworths’ $1.5 billion portfolio of petrol stations, it is interesting to note that among the parties to have inquired about the offering earlier on in the contest were the global trading houses Glencore and Gunvor Group.

Gunvor is a global commodity trading company registered in Cyprus and is the fourth-largest crude oil trader in the world behind Glencore, Vitol and Trafigura.

All of the parties are thought to have shown some level of interest in the Woolworths sale, particularly Puma Energy, which is 49 per cent owned by Trafigura.

With respect to Glencore and Gunvor, it is thought that the pair were hoping to embark on some sort of petrol supply deal, and it is believed their interest may have since waned.

Sources late last week claimed that a deal between Caltex and Woolworths was said to be in the final stages, but on Friday, the supermarket chain said discussions were continuing with various parties after receiving a number of proposals in relation to an acquisition.

Still, market analysts remain adamant the UBS-advised Caltex remains the strongest candidate to buy the operation and is unperturbed by any obstruction it may face by the competition watchdog.

The listed petrol supplier has been signalling for almost two years now that it has a strong appetite for an acquisition that would capitalise on its retail expertise.

Vitol, which owns Shell petrol stations, is seen as an unlikely buyer because of the network it owns, leading to likely objections from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission should it attempt to strike a deal.

If in fact there are other parties in the running, another potential acquisition candidate could be BP.