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TOTAL and ERG have signed an agreement to create a joint venture in the
Italian marketing and refining business which will be called TotalErg.
The shareholder pact calls for joint governance as well as operating
independence for the new entity. TOTAL and Erg will hold equity stakes
of, respectively, 49% and 51%. Created through the merger of TOTAL
Italia and ERG Petroli, the joint venture will be called TotalErg and
will operate under both the TOTAL and ERG brands. TotalErg will enjoy
solid competitive positioning thanks to the integration of its two
partners’ assets and expertise.
TotalErg will become one of the largest marketing operators in Italy,
with a retail market share of nearly 13% and over 3,400 service
stations. Fuel sales will exceed 3.4 million metric tons per year,
while general retail and specialties business sales will amount to
roughly 3.2 million metric tons per year, with significant market
shares in diesel, lubricants, LPG and bitumen.
The joint venture will also be active in the refining business, with a
total continental capacity of roughly 116,000 barrels per day or around
8% of national demand. TotalErg will optimize its industrial assets in
this segment with a priority focus on achieving excellence in its
industrial, environmental and safety performance. The joint venture
will also operate its shareholders’ logistics infrastructure.
The transaction will be submitted to competition authorities for
approval. Until then, TOTAL Italia and ERG Petroli will remain as
separate, competing entities. The TotalErg joint venture does not
cover Sicily where the current operations for both companies will
remain unchanged.
Michel Bénézit, President of Total Refining & Marketing said “I’m
very satisfied to see this major transaction take place. It will
strengthen TOTAL and ERG's positions in Italy while significantly
expanding the portfolio of products and services for Italian consumers.
The joint venture will leverage both partners’ in-depth understanding
of the Italian market and the international experience TOTAL brings as
the European leader in refining and marketing.”
Alessandro Garrone, CEO of ERG stated “I’m extremely pleased that we
have reached such an important agreement. It fits perfectly with
our growth strategy, which is based on partnerships with forefront
international operators that have always proven very beneficial. TOTAL,
one of the world's leading oil and gas operators, is the ideal partner
for ERG Group in its bid to expand in the downstream business, which
has long been one of our main strategic goals. We believe that this
partnership will give rise to a major player in Italy and improve both
companies’ strategic and competitive positioning. It also offers
significant economic benefits, thus creating value for our
shareholders. I believe that the transaction allows ERG Group to
achieve its optimum strategic configuration within the oil segment and
provides us with new opportunities for future growth.”
PetrolWorld 290110
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