MADRID, 15 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) –

The American fund Tensile Capital Management and the independent private equity manager Portobello Capital have announced the entry into the capital of Plenoil, with the purchase of a controlling stake, with the aim of accelerating the growth plan of the service station company ‘low cost’.

As reported by the three companies involved in the operation, through this transaction, the founder and CEO of Plenoil, José Rodríguez de Arellano, will continue in his current position, maintaining his shareholding, while the operation will provide liquidity to four of the founding shareholders.

The new shareholders, Tensile and Portobello, will accelerate the expansion of Plenoil’s service station network in Spain, as well as its imminent arrival in the Portuguese market, in addition to promoting the deployment of electric vehicle (EV) chargers throughout the network. seasons.

The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2024, subject to customary regulatory requirements.

Founded by Rodríguez de Arellano, Plenoil is the fastest growing operator of ‘low cost’ automatic service stations, accounting for almost half of the new service station openings in Spain in the last year, as highlighted by the firms involved in the operation.

Plenoil service stations operate with an automatic payment system (payment by card or ticket at the pump) and comply with environmental and safety regulations.

Currently, Plenoil offers its customers more than 130,000 refuelings per day at its 224 service stations located throughout the Iberian Peninsula, the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands, entering Portugal this year. The company already has a “significant” portfolio of closed locations to undertake its plans to reach at least 500 points of sale in 2027.

More than 80% of Plenoil’s network is currently powered by photovoltaic solar panels and more than 75% of all stations are expected to offer electric vehicle charging by the end of 2024.

“After more than seven years of successful history and having positioned ourselves as leaders in the automatic service station sector, we are very proud that investors of the quality of Tensile and Portobello have decided to invest jointly again in our country and, specifically in Plenoil. This will allow us to accelerate our growth in Spain and Portugal,” highlighted José Rodríguez de Arellano, founder and CEO of Plenoil.

For his part, Doug Dossey, founder and executive partner of Tensile Capital, explained that his entry into the capital of Plenoil seeks to accelerate growth and guide the next stage of organizational development.

Víctor Virós, partner at Portobello Capital, has also highlighted his “excitement” to join forces with Tensile to support the next stage of growth in Plenoil in order to achieve the “ambitious” business plan that the company has ahead.

Tensile Capital Management and Portobello Capital have been advised on this operation by EY and Linklaters, while Plenoil has been advised by Evercore, Abante, PwC and Cuatrecasas.