VPPS Acquires Cross Petroleum
Rebel Oil Acquires Texmo Oil Company
Offen Petroleum Acquires Ozark Mountain Energy
Nwestco Acquires Banks & Company
Reladyne Acquires New West Oil Company

VPPS ACQUIRES CROSS PETROLEUM

STOCKTON, CA. — Valley Pacific Petroleum Services, headquartered in Stockton, CA., has acquired Cross Petroleum of Redding, CA., in a deal that closed at the beginning of the year. The purchase price was not disclosed.

Cross Petroleum distributed wholesale fuel, bulk fuel, lubricants, and home heating fuel in the territory of central and Northern California. Included in the deal are Cross Petroleum's seven bulk plants, seven cardlock facilities, and related real estate as well as supply agreements with 65 open dealers.

According to Doug Milner, Energy Exits, Camas, WA., who represented VPPS in the deal, Cross Petroleum offered a "strategic marketing footprint" in a 230 mile piece of the I-5 corridor, halfway between Vancouver, B.C. and Tijuana, Mexico.

Jimm Cross, who had been serving as vice president of Cross Petroleum, stated, "We had extensive dialogue with many potential suitors but, in the end, our family felt that Valley Pacific was the best fit to carry the torch forward.

"We felt it was important for a successor to understand our customers and the communities we serve, and we wanted a great fit for our employees as well," continued Cross. "So, with all of that in mind, we determined that Valley Pacific and the Crum family were ideally suited to move the company forward."

"As a family-owned company from a rural part of the state, we realize how important it is to stay engaged with the community," said Nathan Crum, president and CEO of VPPS, Stockton, CA. "The Cross team has built a strong foundation of safe, clean, dependable, friendly service in the Sacramento Valley and we intend to keep that tradition alive."

Crum added, "Cross customers will continue to enjoy the high-quality fuel, lubricants and excellent services they've come to expect."

With the addition of Cross Petroleum's Northern California facilities in Redding, Mt. Shasta, Weaverville, Yreka and Chico, Valley Pacific will operate from 17 facilities ranging from the Oregon border to Santa Maria along the California coast, and from Stockton to Bakersfield in California's Central Valley.

REBEL OIL ACQUIRES TEXMO OIL COMPANY

LAS VEGAS, NV. — Rebel Oil Company has acquired Texmo Oil Company of Kingman, AZ., in a deal that closed at the end of November. The purchase price was not disclosed.

Included in the deal is Texmo's distribution business for for motor fuels, racing fuels, aviation fuels and lubrication as well as supply agreements for area convenience stores and a 24-hour cardlock facility on the Gascard network.

Also included in the deal were Texmo's 10 trucks, increasing Rebel Oil's fleet to 60 trucks servicing the Southwest.

Prior to the acquisition, Rebel Oil already had operations focusing on the construction, mining, industrial, agricultural, and railroad business in the area. With the acquisition of Texmo, Rebel says the two brands will operate "side-by-side" to provide "a more holistic offering to all customer segments in the Nevada and Arizona markets."

"The Rebel family has been a friendly competitor with the Texmo family in Kingman for decades" explained Dana Cason Teepe, CEO of Rebel Oil, Las Vegas, NV. "The two family businesses agreed this was the best plan of succession for Texmo. Rebel Oil feels this is an opportunity to grow the family business and tell our story. The Texmo brand comes as a valued addition to the Rebel portfolio."

"After 40 years of building a household name of Texmo by my team and I in the Tri State area, we are excited that Rebel Oil Co., recognizes the brand value we have so long worked for and is going to take Texmo Oil Co. to the next level," said Texmo Oil Company Founder Dana Gorra. "My lead concern for our sale is the Texmo employees and their families. Rebel Oil Company has given them a place to call home for years to come."

A third generation family business, Rebel Oil Company owns and operates six cardlocks and four distribution plants in Nevada, Arizona and California as well as a pipeline-connected terminal and rail facility in Las Vegas, Nevada.

OFFEN PETROLEUM ACQUIRES OZARK MOUNTAIN ENERGY

COMMERCE CITY, CO. — Offen Petroleum has acquired the business assets of Ozark Mountain Energy, a motor fuel distributor, and Petroleum Express, its affiliate trucking company, of Mt. Vernon, MO. The purchase price was not disclosed.

Ozark Mountain Energy was founded in 1991 by the Wilmoth family and distributes 700 million gallons of motor fuels and propane in 13 states, with the majority of its business in Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. Ozark Mountain Energy will keep its name in the territory and continue to operate from their Mt. Vernon, MO., office.

Ozark Mountain CEO Brent Wilmoth will continue to lead this region as part of Offen Petroleum. Eric Wilmoth will be joining Offen's executive leadership team as Executive Vice President of Ozark Operations, and Kyle Wilmoth will serve as Strategic Account Manager.

"This is yet another transformational addition to Offen and we are excited to welcome the Ozark Mountain Energy employees to the Offen team," said Bill Gallagher, CEO of Offen Petroleum. "I congratulate Brent on creating such a professional organization. We believe that the cultures at Offen and Ozark Mountain Energy are a perfect fit which will make this merger very successful."

Gallagher continued, "This transaction affords us the opportunity to strengthen our existing operations while expanding more deeply into new geographies and business lines."

The addition of Ozark Mountain Energy's operations will expand Offen's operations in the mid-continental and Midwestern U.S. and make Offen Petroleum a two-billion-gallon fuel distributor.

Gallagher added, "Additionally, I am pleased that we will be adding some great young talent by having Eric and Kyle Wilmoth join us."

"I am very pleased that Ozark Mountain Energy will continue its growth under a larger platform that will provide greater opportunities for our customers, employees and suppliers," said Brent Wilmoth when the deal was announced. "Our businesses have organically grown in a similar fashion by always putting the customer's needs first.

"I am confident that joining with Offen is a great fit to enhance our company's growth," continued Wilmoth. "To further demonstrate my commitment to the future of our combined companies, I am purchasing a significant equity stake in Offen Petroleum."

"We look forward to continuing to grow our business organically while finding best-in-class distributors who wish to join our mission to be the leading fuel, lubricant and propane provider in the United States," Gallagher concluded.

The acquisition closed in December 2020.

NWESTCO ACQUIRES BANKS & COMPANY

KALISPELL, MT. — Nwestco has acquired Banks & Company of Fresno, CA., a petroleum equipment sales, service, installation, and testing company serving the the Central Valley of California. The purchase price was not disclosed.

"We're now in California and we're excited about getting together with Banks," said Tim Gibbar, CEO of Nwestco, Kalispell, MT. "We've been on the ground with multiple people from our team, putting the systems into place."

Banks & Company was originally launched in 1979 when Banks Moore and Betty Moore purchased Fresno-based Kerrick & Company. Current Banks & Company President John Moore started with the business the same year, working in the company's construction business. He took the helm of the firm in 2003 when Banks and Betty retired.

"Banks Moore and John Moore have sold projects, sold dispensers, sold piping, and provided service," said Gibbar. "Our companies had a lot in common. We've been talking with John for years," he continued, "but they were reserved. I think the timing right now was serendipitous for us."

Gibbar continued, "John and Pat Moore are still working with us there and will be for a few years. We kept all the staff and all the business relationships and now we're going forward. Our California team at Banks is gearing up for new relationships at fair prices and providing what techs and installers need."

Gibbar noted that "Our message on the parts is we want to fill a void. We have a lot of parts in stock, a lot of inventory across our system, ready to ship. We have a nice supply in California and we're going to ramp it up as things get going.

"Fresno being pretty centralized, I'm going to run the classic delivery trucks. And we're going to run our own deliveries for parts. There is no territory for parts sales. We'll probably have some remote warehouses for what makes sense — south to Bakersfield, north to Sacramento, opportunities further north and to the west in Reno/Tahoe. I think very quickly we'll have a different presence in California in parts, sales, and delivery."

Nwestco completed the acquisition of Hooten Equipment in Arkansas last year, expanding the company presence beyond the Northwest. With the acquisition of Banks & Company, Nwestco now has 150 employees across its locations in Kalispell and Billings, MT., Spokane, WA., Boise, ID., Portland, OR., Hooten, AR., and Fresno, CA.

"I like our size now," said Gibbar. "And we're growing. The industry continues to consolidate."

Gibbar concluded, "We'll look at where we can help, where we can provide service, and we were can be valuable. We're competitive but we're not going to go out and bang heads. We're going to make friends and deliver some product."

RELADYNE ACQUIRES NEW WEST OIL COMPANY

GLENDALE, AZ. — New West Oil Company has been acquired by RelaDyne, in a deal that was closed in December. The purchase price was not disclosed.

New West Oil was one of Valvoline's largest distributors in the United States and marketed lubricants, fuel, diesel exhaust fluid and automotive chemicals. Founded in 2011 by Tim Genrich, Ron Reeves, Tom Turley, and Terry Cooney, the leaders stay onboard as part of RelaDyne and the company will continue to operate under the New West Oil name.

New West brings RelaDyne operations into the states of Arizona and Nevada for the first time.

"We are not selling out, we are buying in," said Tim Genrich, serving as CEO of New West Oil Company at the time of the acquisition. "And this ownership change will assure the future of New West Oil as one of the premier lubricant, fuel, and environmental services providers in the United States."

He continued, "To have the ability to meet our growth goals, we decided to partner with RelaDyne who will provide us and our loyal customers with access to many more products and services that we could never have acquired alone."

Genrich noted, "New West Oil has prospered remarkably over the past 9 years and has grown to a company of over 100 employees. This is an incredible milestone for any business and is a testament to the outstanding team we have assembled."

"The acquisition of New West Oil is a continuation of our expansion strategy to the West Coast," said David Schumacher, RelaDyne vice president of Business Development. "We are continually looking to acquire leading businesses with great people and great customers — New West is no exception. The owners have built an incredible business on their and the company's reputation, integrity, strong relationships, and providing great service throughout their entire careers that span nearly 30 years. We are honored to build on that legacy."

RelaDyne is headquartered in Cincinnati, OH., and has grown to more than 60 locations by strategically acquiring other industry leaders in the lubricant, fuel distribution, and industrial service segments.

Originally published in the February 2021 issue of O&A Marketing News.
Copyright 2021 by KAL Publications Inc.