Beautiful Virgin Islands

Thursday, Oct 23, 2025

Abu Dhabi state oil giant weighs £5bn bid for Motor Fuel Group

Abu Dhabi state oil giant weighs £5bn bid for Motor Fuel Group

The Gulf state's national oil company is lining up bankers from JP Morgan to advise on a possible offer for Britain's biggest independent petrol station operator, Sky News learns.
One of the world's biggest oil producers is contemplating a multibillion pound takeover bid for Motor Fuel Group (MFG), Britain’s biggest independent petrol station operator.

Sky News has learnt that the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) is lining up bankers to work on a potential offer for MFG, which has been put up for sale with a price tag of about £5bn.

City sources said on Friday that ADNOC, which is among the 20 biggest oil companies in the world, had yet to make a firm decision about whether to bid ahead of an initial deadline next week.

However, it is preparing to hire JP Morgan, the Wall Street investment bank, to advise it on its interest in the UK company, they said.

ADNOC would be a significant player in a bidding war for a company that has rapidly grown is estate and profitability, and is now seeking to harness the automotive industry's efforts to embrace the transition to cleaner energy.

MFG has committed to spending £50m this year on installing hundreds of electric vehicle charging points across its roughly-900 sites, and believes it can play a leading role in that shift during the coming years.

A bid from ADNOC would represent one of the biggest single investments by a company from the Gulf state in a British business, and follows the signing of a £10bn sovereign investment partnership between the UK and UAE last year.

Technology, energy transition, infrastructure and life sciences were identified as the principal focuses for the partnership between the Abu Dhabi fund Mubadala and the UK's Office for Investment.

ADNOC produces roughly 3m barrels of oil each day, as well as 10.5bn cubic feet of gas, placing it among the world's largest producers of the two energy sources.

If it does bid for MFG, it will probably be pitted against Fortress Investment Group and Macquarie, the Australian financial services behemoth which recently bought Roadchef, the motorway services operator, for about £1bn.

People close to the process cautioned, however, that a sale was not certain to go ahead, given difficult financing markets.

Clayton Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) will only proceed with a sale if it can secure an attractive valuation, they added.

MFG has grown through a series of acquisitions to become the largest independent player in the sector, behind BP and Shell.

A merger of its assets with Morrisons' petrol stations was mooted by City analysts at the time of the supermarket chain's takeover by CD&R, but the prospect of that transaction receded after a £750m deal for EG Group to buy Asda's forecourts was abandoned in October.

Asda and EG Group are both controlled by TDR Capital and the lagger's founders, Mohsin and Zuber Issa.

CD&R has owned MFG since 2015, and has now picked a quartet of banks to oversee the company's sale.

Citi, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and Royal Bank of Canada will work jointly on the process, with a stock market listing considered to be far less likely.

The company has grown substantially since CD&R bought it in 2015 from Patron Capital Partners in a deal worth about £500m.

Three years later, it paid £1.2bn to add MRH, the market leader, creating a group operating under fuel brands such as BP, Esso, Shell and Texaco.

Profits are understood to have risen about tenfold since CD&R's original acquisition of MFG.

Like rivals, it has invested heavily in its convenience retailing proposition, featuring the likes of Costa Coffee, Greggs and Subway at many of its sites.

EG is undertaking a review of its strategic options and has been linked with a merger with Canada's Alimentation Couche-Tard, while Rontec, the group controlled by the entrepreneur Gerald Ronson, has also been periodically linked with a sale.

MFG is run by William Bannister, who acquired the business in 2011 through a management buy-in, while it is chaired by Alasdair Locke, a serial entrepreneur in the energy industry.

Both men would be in line for substantial windfalls from a £5bn sale.

ADNOC could not be reached for comment on Friday, while JP Morgan and CD&R both declined to comment.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
×