Former Tesco Chief Executive Sir Terry Leahy is to join Motor Fuel Group’s board, as the forecourt operator announced a management buyout of the company.
Private investment firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, (CD&R) will act as investment partners in the acquisition, which is valued at approximately £500m. Leahy, current chairman of B&M European Value Retail, is a Senior Advisor to CD&R’s Funds.
The transaction is expected to close in July, subject to customary regulatory approvals.
The MFG management team, whose Chairman is oil industry veteran Alasdair Locke, partnered with original institutional investor Patron in 2011 to acquire the MFG business and today, it is the number two independent petrol and convenience retailer in the UK. The company has grown from 48 stations in 2011 to a current total of 373 operating under the BP, Shell, Texaco and Jet brands. In addition, MFG also operates a Murco-branded dealer network of more than 200 sites.
Jeremy Clarke, Managing Director of MFG said: “We thank Patron for helping us to become one of the largest, most dynamic and profitable independent petrol and convenience retail operators in the UK and we are excited to be partnering with CD&R. The firm’s reputation for operational excellence and deep consumer and retail experience will be especially useful as we move the business forward to the next stage of profitable growth.”
Marco Herbst, a Partner at CD&R, commented: “We look forward to building on MFG management team’s success by continuing to accelerate the company’s transformation into a best-in-class petrol and convenience retailer.”
