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Indonesian firm expands into Singapore fuel retail

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Nearly 60 Esso stations included, deal to close by

year-end

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ExxonMobil ( XOM ) to still supply fuel to stations

(Updates with further details and comments from ExxonMobil ( XOM ))

By Yantoultra Ngui and Trixie Yap

SINGAPORE, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Chandra Asri Pacific

said on Friday it will acquire Exxon Mobil's ( XOM )

network of Esso-branded retail petrol stations in Singapore as

the U.S. major streamlines its downstream operations.

The deal is expected to be completed by the end of this

year, subject to regulatory approvals, the Indonesian

conglomerate said in a statement. The value of the deal, which

includes nearly 60 stations and associated supply agreements,

was not disclosed.

The Indonesian company will continue to use the Esso brand,

buy fuels for the stations from Exxon, and take on Exxon staff

running the business, Chandra Asri said in its statement.

The company said in reply to an email that it was unable to

share commercial details of the deal.

The announcement confirms a Reuters report in April that

Chandra Asri's joint venture was in talks with Exxon Mobil ( XOM ) to

buy the assets as the U.S. energy firm was exiting Singapore's

retail fuel market.

Shares of Chandra Asri Pacific were last up 2.1% on Friday,

LSEG data showed. The stock is down roughly 2.7% year-to-date

and has a market value near $37 billion.

Chandra Asri, in a joint venture with Glencore ( GLCNF ),

owns Aster Chemicals and Energy, which announced a string of

investments in recent months, including an upgrade at

Singapore's Bukom refinery and the purchase of a petrochemical

plant operated by Chevron Phillips Singapore Chemicals.

Exxon will continue running its refining and petrochemical

complex on Jurong Island to provide fuels to its customers in

the region and globally, a company spokesperson said.

Earlier, the U.S. major announced an expected cut of 10%-15%

to its 3,500-strong Singapore workforce by 2027 as part of a

global restructuring plan to streamline its operations.

Exxon previously sold its retail network in Thailand to

Bangchak Petroleum for $603 million in 2023.

UK bank Barclays was the financial adviser to Exxon for the

Singapore deal, Reuters earlier reported, while global law firm

Baker McKenzie represented Chandra Asri.