afrol News, 3 November - The US oil company Chevron today announced that its subsidiary Chevron Africa has agreed to sell 100 percent of its shareholdings in Chevron Kenya and Chevron Uganda to French oil giant Total. 165 service stations will change provider and brand.

"Under the terms of the sales, Total is to acquire Chevron’s marketing businesses in both countries," the US company announced today. Chevron Kenya and Chevron Uganda's assets include 165 Caltex-branded service stations, one terminal, seven fuel depots, six aviation facilities, one lubricants blending plant, and a commercial and industrial fuels business.

"These sales are part of our continuing effort to increase efficiency and improve returns by creating better alignment between our marketing and refining operations," said Shariq Yosufzai, President of Chevron's Global Marketing.

The transactions are subject to obtaining relevant regulatory approvals and are expected to close in the first half of 2009. No additional details of the agreement were disclosed, but it is known that Chevron has had plans to pull out of Kenya for at least one year, finding it difficult to find a buyer.

Total now emerges as the leading player on the Kenyan upstream oil market. Analysts hold the French company is now gaining control of some 35 percent of Kenyan oil industry assets. This, however, would be above the legal limit set by Kenyan regulatory bodies, which do not allow any single company to control more than 25 percent of the national petroleum market.

California-based Chevron has operated in Kenya since the 1930s, and for a long time was one of the market leaders in Africa at large. But the US company is now reported to pull out from all African markets except Egypt and South Africa.

By staff writer

© afrol News

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