Independent forecourt operator Roadside Real Estate, which has rapidly built up a portfolio of 21 filling stations, is set to receive a £4.5m cash boost to fund further expansion.
The money is due to be paid by the end of 2026 and comes by way of a loan Roadside made to another company, which the forecourt operator is now selling to a third firm. Roadside says it will use the funds to strenghthen its balance sheet and “support its growth strategy”.
In detailing the financial arrangement, Roadside Real Estate notes that the last year has been one “of significant change”. Towards the end of 2025 Roadside acquired the six-site Gardner estate for £17.8m, while in April this year it bought the £28.6m, 12-site Hills portfolio.
Roadside says these sites, alongside two others it purchased in the past 12 months, are trading “in line with management’s expectations”, noting that its February acquisition of DA Roberts, which included a forecourt and a bulk-fuel operation with 24 trucks, has, in light of rising fuel prices, “increased the value of working capital acquired with the business”.
Returning to the debt Roadside has sold, this was issued to a company called Cambridge Sleep Sciences (CSS), which makes electro-acoustic equipment designed to help with a good night’s rest.
CSS’s debt has been bought from Roadside by a company called CGV Ventures 1, which will pay the forecourt firm £2.8m for the loan itself and £1.2m for accrued interest, alongside a redemption premium of £0.5m, paid as Roadside’s loan to Cambridge is ending early.
Roadside still has a £20m interest in CSS, which, should it wish, it will be able to sell from September 1 to 30 next year by exercising a put option, which guarantees the amount the company will receive for its stake.
Roadside Real Estate chief executive Charles Dickson comments: “The sale of the CSS Loan Note turns a non-core asset carried at nil into £4.5 million of cash, further strengthening the balance sheet as we execute our buy-and-build strategy.
“It has been a busy year for Roadside. We have completed a number of acquisitions and a successful equity fundraise, and we continue to deliver operational and commercial improvements across the acquired portfolio in line with our stated objectives.
“Roadside is well positioned to keep growing, through both organic initiatives and further acquisitions, to deliver sustainable value for our shareholders.”
