MOL expresses interest in other acquisitions

The Hungarian group MOL will further expand its network of petrol stations in Romania through new constructions and acquiring new stations in order to strengthen its position as the second largest fuel distributor on the market, said Gyorgy Mosonyi, executive manager of the group.

On Tuesday, the Hungarian operator officially announced its acquisition of Shell Romania SRL, which used to run the Shell petrol stations, in a transaction whose value is not known, but which is in excess of 70 million dollars (around 54 million euros), according to some estimations provided by market sources.

Romanian petrol stations will therefore no longer bear the Shell name following the decision of the Anglo-Dutch giant to sell its retail network to MOL in two transactions, one of which was signed in June 2003, and the other this month. Shell will be remain on the Romanian market, but only on the LPG segment through Shell Gas Romania, a joint venture in which it owns 55%, with the rest of the stock belonging to Petrom.

“We are targeting dynamic growth, and the transaction we are talking about is another step forward in this direction,” said Mosonyi during a press conference. The announcement of the acquisition of the 59 petrol stations was made in the presence of MOL staff, though the seller was not present.

“We are still hungry for more,” said Slavomir Jankovic, a director for the southern region at MOL.

MOL announced that the integration of the company taken over by the Hungarian group would be carried out rapidly over the following months, and would involve the takeover of the 59 Shell stations, its lubricants business, and its trade and aviation portfolios.

Since 1996, Shell Romania SRL has been a partner of Henri Coanda International Airport National Company for aircraft fuel supply, a business segment MOL is strongly interested in.

The staff of the company that was taken over will not be laid off, say MOL officials, adding that the domestic branch will retain its Bucharest headquarters (Shell Romania) and Cluj headquarters (MOL Romania).

At this moment, MOL claims to control around 5.7-6% of the Romanian retail market and will double its market share to 12% following the acquisition.

The operation will give a strong boost to MOL’s business in Romania. The company’s turnover will increase by at least double to a level of 330-350 million dollars per year, taking into account the results for 2003, which, according to officials from the Hungarian group, will be exceeded this year.

Following the sale of its Romanian petrol stations to MOL, Shell will receive a total of around 100 million dollars.