National Association of Convenience Stores "Crack the Code Experience"
Southern California Petroleum Industry Golf and Tennis Tournament
Hawaii Petroleum Marketers Association Golf Tournament
Want to see the photos that didn't make the issue? Check out the Cutting Room Floor.
Story
Distributing Acquired by Parkland
Flyers Energy
Acquires Fleet Express Cardlocks
Parkland
Acquires Conrad &
Bischoff
Petaluma Bans
New Gasoline Stations
Par Pacific
Signs Sale/Leaseback Deal
BOZEMAN, MT. — Story Distributing of Bozeman, MT., has been acquired by Parkland USA in a deal that closed in February. The purchase price was not disclosed.
Story Distributing Company was formed in April of 1976 by Doug Alexander when he purchased the assets of Story Motor Supply, the oldest operating petroleum distributor in the state of Montana which had been in operation since 1905. Under the leadership of Doug and current president Dan Alexander, Story Distributing expanded to include branded distribution for ExxonMobil, Phillips 66, and Sinclair across Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Washington, and North Dakota.
Story Distributing also marketed packaged lubricants, greases, and antifreeze under the Union 76, Exxon, Mobil, Kendall, Conoco, and Cam II brands.
The company had approximately 175 employees at the time of the sale.
Included in the deal are Story Distributing's commercial supply operations of over 1,800 farm, home, and business accounts, dealer distribution, and the company's 12 retail sites, operating under the name of Casey's Corner Convenience Stores. Also included are the company's fleet of tanker trucks and bulk plant facilities.
"We've been rooted in the Bozeman community since 1976, and our employees are the foundation of our organization," stated Dan Alexander. "They work very hard every day to serve our customers, and this acquisition with Parkland allows them more advanced opportunities to grow and serve our Bobcat community."
AUBURN, CA. — Flyers Energy has acquired Fleet Express Commercial Fueling, the Ohio cardlock fueling division of Mansfield Energy Corp. The purchase price was not disclosed.
Included in the deal are five unattended cardlock sites in and around Dayton, Ohio. They will be reimaged to Flyer's Quick Fuel brand on the CFN network.
"This string of locations connects the Indianapolis and Cincinnati markets to our existing presence in Toledo and Detroit," said Tom Di Mercurio, CEO of Flyers, announcing the deal.
Flyers also noted that they are "actively acquiring commercial fueling companies that fit with their plan to grow nationwide. They have completed "more than a dozen acquisitions over the last two decades and are pursuing more."
"The additional sites complement our existing network of Quick Fuel locations in the region, giving our valued guests more choices and added value," added Kris Kanak, director of Sales and Marketing for Flyers Energy.
IDAHO FALLS, ID. — Conrad & Bischoff Inc., one of the largest fuel and lubricant distributors in Idaho, has signed a deal to be acquired by Parkland Corporation. The purchase price for the sale, announced at the end of February, was not disclosed.
Included in the deal are Conrad & Bischoff's wholesale assets including its bulk plants in Idaho Falls, ID., and Jackson, WY., and terminals in Nampa, ID., and Idaho Falls.
The deal also includes 17 Phillips 66-branded service stations and operating in Idaho, Wyoming, and Utah, a travel center, and two Shell-branded stations operating in Wyoming and Elko, NV. The convenience stores at the locations are operating under the brand of KJ's Super Stores and will be rebranded by Parkland to On The Run stores. Also included are the company's cardlocks operating on the CFN network and a Mobil 1 Lube Express location at its Idaho Falls bulk plant.
Parkland will also take over Conrad & Bischoff's distribution business in the territory, supplying Phillips 66, Marathon, and Shell-branded fuel to 39 dealers in Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana as well as its ExxonMobil lubricants distribution.
Parkland will convert Conrad & Bischoff's headquarters into a Parkland regional operating center as part of Parkland USA.
"Our assets, including our extensive rail networks and storage facilities, make a strong infrastructure connection for Parkland's existing operations in Utah, Colorado, Montana, and the Dakotas, which will provide our employees more growth opportunities and enable even greater service for our customers," said Jared Neville, board member of Conrad & Bischoff. "More importantly, however, our decision to join forces with Parkland was due to the longstanding, deep and caring relationship we have had with Parkland USA's leadership team that gave us comfort and confidence that the acquisition and integration would be handled the right way."
Conrad & Bischoff had been a family owned and operated business since 1959. Tragically, the company's previous owners, brothers Kirk and Jim Hansen Jr., were killed in a plane crash along with their father, Jim Hansen Sr., and six other family members in November 2019 after a hunting trip.
The acquisition is expected to close in the second quarter.
PETALUMA, CA. —The Petaluma City Council voted unanimously in February to ban the "creation, expansion, reconstruction, and relocation" of new gasoline stations in the city.
The vote would permanently extend a moratorium on new gasoline stations and fuel pumps that has been in place for two years in Petaluma.
The Northern California city has approximately 60,000 residents and 16 gasoline stations at the time the ban was enacted. The existing gasoline stations may continue to operate but they cannot increase the number or size of their tanks or pumps at the site. Under the terms of the ban, any expansions at their sites are "limited to serving zero-emission vehicles."
The City Council said they would streamline the process to add EV chargers and hydrogen fuel cell stations in the city.
"The goal here is to move away from fossil fuels, and to make it as easy as possible to do that," said Council Member D'Lynda Fischer, who introduced the measure. "Right now, we have existing fossil fuel stations, and what we want them to do is add [EV] chargers and create another source of fueling people can use."
Fischer added, "I hope other cities will follow suit."
The California Fuels & Convenience Alliance called the action to ban new gas stations in California "alarming" and noted "a vast majority of Californians continue to drive gas-powered cars. These Californians still require fueling sites within reasonable proximity of their homes or places of employment.
"This direction will not drive consumers to replace their vehicles, but will instead force them to travel greater distances out of the way to acquire the fuel they need to make their commutes and get their kids to school."
"Gas stations are the best situated industry to help guide a transition to a more diverse fueling landscape and have been leaders in installing hydrogen pumps and EV chargers," noted James Allison of the California Fuels & Convenience Alliance, which says the ban unjustly punishes service stations for providing products their customers want.
"The gas station industry has spent over 100 years identifying the most efficient ways to fuel communities. Even under the argument that the fossil fuel industry is waning, existing gas stations are the best positioned to transition to new fueling infrastructure," he said.
Petaluma Mayor Teresa Barrett said, "We really felt it was a win-win. A lot of these gas stations will start putting in EV chargers ... which is something that will be good for their business going forward." Barrett told reporters that the new station ban "was completely uncontroversial for residents" of Petaluma. She noted that when the Council took up the measure, it received only one letter from the public and no one spoke at the meeting when the measure was considered.
HONOLULU, HI. — Par Pacific has signed a deal to sell 22 of its service stations and convenience stores in Hawaii to Realty Income Corporation for $116,100,000.
Under the terms of the deal, Par Pacific agreed to sell the stations to Realty Income and then lease them back, signing a 15-year contract.
Par Pacific will have the option of extending the lease by up to an additional 20 years after the 15 year term is up.
Par Pacific officials say they will use approximately $53.2 million of the net cash proceeds from the station sale "to repay debt and associated obligations." The remainder will be used "for general corporate purposes."
In the Pacific Northwest and the Rockies, Par Pacific owns and operates 60,000-bpd of combined refining capacity, as well as logistics systems and 33 retail locations.
Originally published in the
April 2021 issue of O&A Marketing
News.
Copyright 2021 by KAL Publications Inc.
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