January 5, 2017 [OPIS] - Vitol said on Wednesday that Buckeye Partners has completed the previously announced acquisition of a 50% equity interest in the holding company of VTTI for $1.15 billion.
VTTI is 50% (indirectly) owned by Buckeye and 50% (indirectly) by Vitol. It is intended that the joint shareholding of Buckeye and Vitol will add greater strategic value to VTTI and will further strengthen VTTI’s position as an independent provider of energy storage solutions, according to Vitol.
VTTI BV is a fee-based business formed to own, operate, develop and acquire refined petroleum product and crude oil terminaling and related energy infrastructure assets on a global scale. VTTI BV’s assets include interests in a portfolio of terminals that are located throughout the world with a combined total storage capacity of 54 million bbl including assets under construction. On Aug. 1, 2014, VTTI Energy Partners LP began trading on the New York Stock Exchange as a master limited partnership (MLP).
Buckeye is a publicly traded master limited partnership and owns and operates a network of integrated assets providing midstream logistic solutions, primarily consisting of the transportation, storage, and marketing of liquid petroleum products. It is one of the largest independent liquid petroleum products pipeline operators in the United States in terms of volumes delivered, with approximately 6,000 miles of pipeline and a terminal network comprising more than 120 liquid petroleum products terminals with aggregate storage capacity of over 110 million bbl.
Through this transaction, Buckeye will now have access to VTTI’s significant international footprint. Buckeye and Vitol have equal board representation and voting rights in VTTI. VTTI will continue to be run as an independent, standalone company under the leadership of CEO Rob Nijst.