Chemoil Energy (CHEL.SI) said on Thursday its majority shareholders are in talks with various parties for the possible sale of part or all of the $465 million company.
Sources familiar with the deal told Reuters on Wednesday that the family of Chemoil founder Robert Chandran is in talks to sell its 51 percent interest in the marine fuel supplier. [ID:nSIN478340]
The sources said trading giant Glencore is the frontrunner for a stake worth $240 million.
“The company has been informed that the majority shareholder is currently in discussions with various parties involving a possible sale of some or all of its shares in the company,” Chemoil Chief Executive Officer Clyde Michael Bandy said in a statement to the stock exchange.
“However, the company has been informed by the majority shareholder that, at this juncture, the discussions may or may not materialise into something definitive.”
Chemoil did not say who the major shareholders were talking to but added it “will keep the market informed if it becomes aware of any significant development in this regards”.
Glencore International AG, the world’s biggest commodity trader, is still in negotiations after a bidding process began in February when it vied with Europe-based oil trader Vitol and Wall Street bank Morgan Stanley (MS.N), one source who was involved in the process told Reuters.
Two sources familiar with the talks said Vitol was no longer in the running, while three industry sources said negotiations were now focused on concluding a deal with Glencore.
Buying Chemoil would give Glencore, the second-largest independent oil trader, a valuable marine fuels business in the United States and a wealth of fuel storage assets in Singapore Asia and the Middle East, strengthening its physical trading playbook at a time when global storage tanks are at a premium.
Chemoil shares have doubled in the last six months and last traded at 43 U.S. cents each.
Source: news.chemnet.com
