A deal to sell 84 service stations to two of the Top 50 Indies has been agreed by Esso Petroleum Company and ROC UK (ExxonMobil).

Euro Garages has picked up 48 company-owned service stations in the Midlands and eastern England, and 36 company-owned service stations in south-west England and south Wales will be sold to Rontec Investments LLP.

In a statement the oil company said it expected both sale and transfer agreements to be completed in the second quarter of this year.

On-site staff and a small number of above-site retail operating company personnel will transfer to Rontec and Euro Garages. It said: “One of our key priorities is to facilitate a successful transition in a fair and respectful manner for those employees.”

The sale is part of Esso’s move to a branded wholesale business model in the UK retail market and follows sell offs of packages of other forecourts last year. Further sales are expected but Esso was remaining tight-lipped about details.

The company said ExxonMobil will continue to serve the retail market in these regions, with Rontec and Euro Garages supplying Esso-branded fuels to their respective sites.

Both Rontec and Euro Garages will purchase Esso fuels at the terminal rack and deliver to Esso-branded service stations in their respective networks.

It added: “Consumers will still be able to buy high-quality Esso-branded fuel, use their Esso cards and buy Mobil-branded lubricants at these sites. They can expect the same buying experience at sites operated by Rontec or Euro Garages under the Esso brand, and Clubcard points will be awarded in the same way.

“The transition to this new distribution model will not affect other ExxonMobil activities in the UK. We remain committed to maintaining a visible presence in the UK. In fact, the number of Esso-branded sites in the UK has grown in the past 18 months following previous branded fuel supply agreements. There are more than 1,000 Esso-branded sites in the country.”