Shell to sell German refinery to UK’s private equity firm Klesch & Co

Royal Dutch Shell yesterday announced that it has a binding agreement for the sale of its Heide refinery in Germany to UK family-owned private equity firm Klesch & Co as part of its earlier announced plans of selling 15 per cent of its refinery capacity in Europe and the Americas.

As part of the sale, Shell is also selling the associated local infrastructure and businesses to Klesch. Shell did not reveal the financial details of the transaction.

While this is Klesch' first acquisition of a refinery, the deal is also the first acquisition of a refinery by a private equity firm.

The Heide refinery can process 4.5 million tons of crude per year, or 90,000 barrels of crude oil per day (bpd).

''The agreement with Klesch marks the latest step in Shell's Downstream strategy to reduce net refining capacity by 15 per cent, to reduce our marketing footprint, and focus the portfolio on profitability and growth potential,'' said Shell in a statement.

In February 2010, the multinational petroleum company of Anglo-Dutch origins said that it would sell 15 per cent of its refinery capacity in Europe and the Americas-a move that was triggered by lower oil prices and higher refining costs. (See: Shell to cut refining capacity by 15 per cent, axe another 1,000 jobs)