MADRID (dpa-AFX) - Repsol has reached an agreement to acquire 40% of the Mexican automotive fluids and lubricants company Bardahl.
The company will manufacture and sell its lubricants in Mexico through Bardahl, a brand with widespread recognition and extensive experience.
Repsol plans to invest about 400 million euros to open between 200 and 250 service stations per year in Mexico through 2022, aiming to achieve a market share between 8 and 10%. Repsol's current network already includes 60 service stations in nine states: Mexico City, the State of Mexico, Veracruz, Baja California Sur, Jalisco, Oaxaca, Puebla, Hidalgo, and Tlaxcala.
The transaction will create a joint venture-60% Bardahl, 40% Repsol-and is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2018, once the necessary regulatory authorizations have been granted.
The new joint enterprise will sell Bardahl- and Repsol-brand lubricants in Mexico.
The purchase of 40% of Bardahl is part of the growth plan of Repsol's Lubricants business unit, which aims to double its sales volume to reach 300,000 metric tons by 2021, 70% of them from international business. To achieve this objective, it will invest up to 100 million euros to acquire stakes in lubricant plants, particularly in Latin America and Asia, in countries such as China, Indonesia, and India.
Currently, Spain represents approximately 55% of Repsol's lubricants sales, while international business accounts for the remaining 45%. The company's objective is for sales outside Spain to account for 70% of the total in 2021.
The transaction is in line with Repsol's Strategic Plan, which aims to invest 15 billion euros through 2020. Of this investment, a total of four billion euros will be allocated to new initiatives, especially in the Downstream unit, both for the expansion of the petrochemicals, service stations, lubricants and trading businesses (1.5 billion euros) and for low carbon emissions projects (2.5 billion euros).
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