Flyers Acquires Redding Oil Wholesale Assets
Gilbarco Veeder-Root Acquires Outcast Media
Tacoma Fined $ 40,000 For Contaminated Oil
Amyris and Total Form Joint Venture
CAM2 Acquired by Investor Group

FLYERS ACQUIRES REDDING OIL WHOLESALE ASSETS

AUBURN, CA. — Flyers Energy, based here, has acquired the commercial fueling assets of Redding Oil Company of Redding, CA. The purchase price was not disclosed.

Included in the deal, announced at the beginning of May, were Redding Oil's wholesale fueling and contracts business as well as two convenience stores. Flyers officials said they would be adding the Redding Oil accounts to the CFN network.

Redding Oil is keeping ownership of its remaining convenience stores as well as its bulk lubricants business and its local bobtail delivery trucks.

"The fuel industry is evolving. We have built this company through three generations over the past 75 years, and are pleased to partner with Flyers Energy to take on the commercial products," said Jack Reiser, CEO of Redding Oil, announcing the deal. "As much as anything, our decision to sell this part of our business was largely driven by our commitment to always act in the best interest of our loyal customers," Reiser continued. "With the technology, regulatory, and environmental landscapes evolving so quickly, it is very difficult for smaller operators like Redding Oil to provide competitive pricing and best-of-class service to our commercial accounts. By contrast, we believe that Flyers has the skills, resources, and scale to be an exceptional partner for our commercial customers now and into the future."

"By growing, we can increase our operating efficiency and better serve our customers," said Rick Teske, CEO of Flyers Energy. "The Reiser family and their team have built a solid, well-respected business here in Northern California and we are pleased to be adding many of the Redding Oil employees to the Flyers team."

Redding Oil has operated in Northern California since 1939.

GILBARCO VEEDER-ROOT ACQUIRES OUTCAST MEDIA

GREENSBORO, NC. — Gilbarco Veeder-Root announced that it has acquired Outcast Media, which operates a video network broadcast providing content to customers at the pump. The price of the acquisition was not disclosed.

Outcast will operate as the media business unit of Gilbarco.

At the time of the acquisition at the beginning of the year, Outcast's national network reached a monthly audience of 36 million viewers measured by Nielsen. As a division of Gilbarco Veeder-Root, the network will have the potential to access to Gilbarco's customer base of over 60,000 retail fueling stations and to grow to more than 100 million monthly viewers over the next two years.

"In 2010, we chose Outcast as our media partner for its industry leadership and innovative vision: building the largest and most targeted video network for reaching the on-the-go consumer," said Michael Schulte, president North America from Gilbarco, announcing the deal. "The addition of Outcast to Gilbarco's team allows us to work even more closely with them on technology innovations like consumer targeting that will help our convenience store customers reach and engage consumers and compete against other channels."

Gilbarco and Outcast officials also said they plan to "introduce new forms of media designed to grow c-store sales and enhance a consumer's experience while fueling."

TACOMA FINED $40,000 FOR CONTAMINATED OIL

TACOMA, WA. — The City of Tacoma has agreed to pay $40,000 to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for violating used oil disposal rules.

According to the EPA, the City of Tacoma shipped 750 gallons of used oil contaminated with PCBs to Emerald Services, an oil recycling company. During their routine oil testing, Emerald Services found contamination with toxic polychlorinated biphenyls and was able to trace the source back to the City of Tacoma.

Because the oil was contaminated when it arrived at the recycler, an additional 7,500 gallons of used oil was also contaminated and all of the oil had to be disposed of as hazardous waste.

The City of Tacoma stated they did not know their used oil was contaminated with PCBs.

The $40,000 fine was a settlement between the City of Tacoma and the U.S. EPA for violating federal rules on used oil disposal.

"Today's settlement should serve as a reminder that handling used oil requires attention," said Edward Kowalski, director of EPA's enforcement program in Seattle, in a press release.

AMYRIS AND TOTAL FORM JOINT VENTURE

EMERYVILLE, CA/ — Biofuels company Amyris Inc., based here, has entered into a joint venture with the France-based major oil company Total, forming a new company, Total Amyris BioSolutions.

The joint venture holds the exclusive rights and intellectual property to produce and market renewable diesel and jet fuel from Amyris' biomass fuel production processes.

"Total Amyris Biosolutions is a first step towards the commercialization of our renewable diesel and jet fuels. We are in the phase of scaling-up the industrial process and we expect to start commercialization within the next few years, once our joint research and development goals are met," said Philippe Boisseau, president of Marketing & Services and New Energies for Total. "As far as commercialization is concerned, the new joint-venture will benefit from the know-how and customer access of Total, which operates in more than 130 countries and is aiming to become a key supplier in renewable fuels," Boisseau added.

Amyris has developed microbial engineering and screening technologies that modify the way microorganisms process sugars. Amyris is using this industrial synthetic biology platform to design microbes, primarily yeast, and use them as "living factories" to convert plant-sourced sugars into renewable chemical and transportation fuel products.

"The formation of this joint venture, anticipated by our streamlined collaboration agreement signed last year, paves the way for us to initiate our fuels commercialization efforts globally, building on Amyris' experience with renewable diesel in Brazil and the growing demand for lower-emission jet fuels worldwide," said John Melo, president of Amyris, Inc.

Amyris operates laboratories and a pilot plant in California as well as an industrial facility in Sao Paulo, Brazil where the company currently markets its fuel.

CAM2 ACQUIRED BY INVESTOR GROUP

GOLDEN, CO. — Lubricants company CAM2 International LLC has been acquired by an investor group, effective as of the beginning of March. The purchase price was not disclosed.

Heading the investor group are Jack Baker, who had been serving as president of CAM2 since its inception in 1984, and Walter Tyson, former senior vice president of Martin Lubricants/Cross Oil.

Included in the deal are the rights to all of the CAM2 brands, the CAM2 marketing organization, and the Hammond Lubricants Works blending facility in Hammond, IN.

Under the new ownership, Baker will serve as CEO of CAM2 and Tyson will serve as president of the company. The existing senior management — Executive Vice President John Horstman, Senior Vice President of Special Projects Garry Rooney, Vice President of Logistics Steve Shockites, Vice President of Sales and Marketing Lindsay Baker-Hegna, and Vice President of Manufacturing Jeff Cosman — will all remain in place.

CAM2 will also continue to manufacture at the Golden State Lubricant Works blending facility in Bakersfield, CA.

In an official statement, Baker said that with the new ownership and structure CAM2 has "positioned themselves for success and very strong future growth." He added, "With the addition of Walter Tyson as president of CAM2 and his experience to our existing management team, we believe we have the strongest and most experienced leadership in the lubricants industry today."

Originally published in the June 2014 issue of O&A Marketing News.
Copyright 2014 by KAL Publications Inc.