Tedcastle sold to Irving Oil as forecourts sector set for shake-up
CANADIAN multinational Irving Oil has agreed to buy the company behind Top Oil.
The Reihill family is selling the business, known as the Tedcastle Group, for an undisclosed sum. However, it’s understood to be well in excess of €100m.
Top Oil has a petrol station business, an aviation fuel business, and is also a supplier of home heating oil.
The deal is still subject to regulatory approval from the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.
Tedcastle Holdings deputy chairman Raymond Reihill said it was “a very significant day for the extended family and our business in Ireland”.
“We are delighted to hand over the reins, on completion of these agreements, to another family company and are confident that the business will continue to grow and prosper.”
Irving Oil said the deal would “ultimately enable it to further expand its business across the Atlantic basin”, having previ- ously purchased Ireland’s sole refinery in the Co Cork village of Whitegate in 2016.
“This is a great day for our company,” said Arthur Irving, the chairman of Irving Oil.
“We are proud to be doing business in Ireland and are looking forward to working with everyone at Top Oil. We’re excited about the future.”
Irving said the Top Oil brand would be maintained, as would the existing workforce. Top Oil has a terminal at Dublin Port, 20 inland oil depots, 200 dealer and company-owned forecourts.
The petrol station business is particularly competitive in Ireland, with Top
Oil facing the likes of listed company Applegreen, US giant Valero which owns Texaco, the long-established brand Maxol, and Canadian business Couche Tard which recently bought Topaz and rebranded it as Circle K.
Both Applegreen and Topaz have spoken about plans to diversify their offerings with more of a focus on food, which tends to be a higher-margin business than fuel.
Top Oil will also face a challenge as society seeks to shift away from oil towards cleaner sources of fuel.
“We’re excited about this opportunity to grow our business in Ireland and work with the Top Oil team,” said Irving Oil president Ian Whitcomb.
“We have worked hard to build strong customer relationships and establish meaningful community partnerships in Ireland and are delighted to continue to grow our business in this area. It’s a natural fit for us.”
Tedcastle is an unlimited company and so does not have to file detailed financial accounts.
Its history dates back to 1800, when it was originally founded by Robert Tedcastle as a coal-importing business servicing Dublin.
It came into the ownership of the Reihill family in 1951.
According to the Top Oil website, the Tedcastle Group also includes a business called Bruce Lindsay.
Also part of the business is Tedcastle Properties, which looks after the group’s property interests both here and in the UK.
Dublin-based Top Oil has a 200-year history and operates on both sides of the Border.
“We are looking forward to joining Irving Oil and continuing to grow and develop our business under its umbrella,” said CEO Gerard Boylan.
“We share a common commitment to our employees, customers and the wider community,” he added.
Law firm LK Shields advised Tedcastle on the sale, along with IBI Corporate Finance. Irving, based in Saint John, New Brunswick, moved into Europe in 2014 with an office in London. Founded in 1924, it operates Canada’s largest refinery as well as a network of distribution terminals and petrol stations. Top Oil is based in Dublin.
‘We are delighted to hand over the reins to another family company’