Cleary Gottlieb acted as U.S. counsel to the joint bookrunners ABG Sundal Collier, Citi and BofA Merrill Lynch in the separation and offering of shares of Statoil Fuel & Retail. SFR, the retail fuel and convenience business of Norwegian oil and gas company Statoil, was separated from Statoil on October 1. The separation was followed by a public offering in Norway, Sweden and Denmark and an institutional offering outside Norway, Sweden and Denmark of 138 million (including shares issued upon exercise of the over-allotment option), or 46%, of SFR’s shares. The offer price was NOK 39 per share. The offering closed on October 27 and the closing for the shares sold upon exercise of the over-allotment option was on November 5.
SFR is a leading Scandinavian road transportation fuel retailer with over 100 years of operations in the region. SFR also has retail operations in Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Russia. In addition to the sale of transportation fuel, SFR also has a market-leading fuel station convenience business. SFR is also involved in the sale of stationary energy (mainly heating oil, kerosene, LPG and heavy fuel for industrial purposes) and marine fuel (marine gasoil and heavy fuel) as well as aviation fuel, lubricants and chemicals.