Following application by Ampol to the New Zealand Commerce Commission, approval has been granted today for the sale of the Gull NZ network to the investment manager Allegro which has also cleared the way for approval of the Ampol purchase of Z Energy.
Ampol committed to divest Gull in full to ensure any potential competition law issues were fully addressed as part of its application to the NZCC for approval to acquire Z Energy.
The Gull business in New Zealand comprises wholly owned subsidiaries of Ampol Limited, ALD Group Holdings NZ Limited, Gull New Zealand Limited and Terminals New Zealand Limited. Gull New Zealand Limited operates a network of 112 primarily unmanned fuel service stations and Terminals New Zealand Limited owns and operates a 91ML fuel import terminal at Mount Maunganui. Another wholly owned subsidiary of Ampol, ALD NZ Property Holding Limited owns six retail properties leased to Gull New Zealand Limited, and these properties will be transferred to Gull as part of the sale.
The sale of Gull NZ to Allegro was for approximately NZ$509 million plus approximately $63m in debt like items and a companion fuel supply agreement for the coming 5 years.
The proceeds of the Gull NZ sale will be used to fund the Z Energy purchase which, while cleared by the NZCC still faces approval of the Overseas Investment Office (OIS) and a Z Energy shareholder vote that is due for 25 March 2022.
Matt Halliday, Managing Director and CEO of Ampol said, “We welcome the decision by the NZCC, which recognises that our commitment to fully divest Gull addresses the potential competition law issues The NZCC decision is an important milestone towards the successful completion of the transaction to acquire Z Energy by the end of the first half of 2022.”
Elisha Radwanowski BCom(HRM&IR)
ACAPMA
