MFG has sold 39 sites to fellow Top 50 Indie SGN as part of a divestment of 87 sites to satisfy a deal with the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).
Other Top 50 Indies Rontec, Penny Petroleum, Platinum Retail and Highway Stops also purchased sites, and the second largest acquisition was made by Shell.
In June last year an offer was made to sell 87 MFG sites in order to address competition concerns over the takeover of Morrisons by MFG’s owner, Clayton Dubilier & Rice (CD&R).
The CMA has now released a statement detailing all of the purchasers and revealing that the investigation into the deal has now been closed.
It said all the deals had been completed between January and May this year and the purchasers were:
- 3j Service Station (1 site);
- A&D Murco Friendly (1 site);
- Grove Retail (3 sites);
- Highway Stops (5 sites);
- Penny Petroleum (8 sites);
- Platinum Retail (10 sites);
- Rontec (1 site);
- SGN (39 sites);
- and Shell (19 sites).
In January last year the CMA opened its investigation into CD&R’s £7bn purchase of Morrisons.
At the time MFG had 921 forecourts, while Morrisons operated 339 petrol stations alongside its supermarkets across England, Scotland and Wales.
The CMA’s investigation focused on local areas where both businesses operated petrol stations. It found that the deal raised competition concerns in relation to the supply of petrol and diesel in 121 local areas across England, Scotland and Wales which could lead to higher prices for motorists in these locations.
In order to address these concerns, CD&R offered to divest 87 of MFG’s petrol stations to a purchaser or purchasers to be approved by the CMA.
