Shell May Split Lpg Business
Shell has short listed bidders for its worldwide
lpg business, but may now sell the unit in parts rather than
outright. Shell originally invited offers more than a year ago,
and only two bidders are left in the race, Repsol and BC Capital.
Repsol
purchased Shell’s Portuguese lpg business for around
100 million euros in December 2004 in a transaction that was
cleared by the European Commission, but a deal for the entire
unit may be subject to competition scrutiny. The purchase would
double Repsol’s lpg business and create the world’s
largest lpg supplier.
Shell was originally looking for offers
in the region of £1.7
billion, but the price may now have dropped after the unit’s
French subsidiary, believed to contribute a substantial part
of the revenues, had disappointing 2005 earnings.
"We got a number of bids at the end of
2005,” said a spokesperson
for Shell. “They were for the whole business as well as
parts and came from a range of private equity and trade buys.
"Various sale options are being pursued,
including selling the business in more than one transaction.
We would expect to conclude
during the first half
of 2006.”
Shell has spent the past year restructuring
the lpg business, which has underlying earnings of 200 million
euros
per year and
employs more than 3,000 people, away from the main group.
Return to February/March
2006 News
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