Sunoco, Inc. (NYSE: SUN) announced today that it has reached a
definitive agreement to sell its phenol manufacturing facility in
Haverhill, Ohio, to Haverhill Chemicals LLC, an affiliate of Goradia
Capital LLC. Sunoco will sell the facility and the estimated value of
the product inventory attributable to the facility for a combined
purchase price of approximately $106.5 million. The purchase price is
subject to adjustment based upon the product inventory on hand at the
closing. Sunoco incurred a pretax non-cash charge of $169 million
related to the write-down of Haverhill assets in the second quarter of
2011.
The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and customary closing
conditions and is expected to be completed by the end of 2011.
"The sale of the Haverhill manufacturing facility continues our efforts
to unlock value for shareholders by divesting certain non-core assets
and completes our exit from the chemicals business," said Lynn L.
Elsenhans, Sunoco's chairman and chief executive officer. "We appreciate
the years of service that the employees at Haverhill have given Sunoco."
Alberto Spera, the new chief executive officer of Haverhill Chemical,
said, "I am truly excited by this acquisition. We are impressed by the
Haverhill team, and I look forward to working together to create a
successful company.”
Sunoco is a leading transportation fuel provider, with operations
located primarily in the East Coast and Midwest regions of the United
States. The Company sells transportation fuels through more than 4,900
branded retail locations in 24 states. APlus convenience stores are
operated by the Company or independent dealers in more than 600 retail
locations. The retail network in the Northeast is principally supplied
by Sunoco-owned refineries with a combined crude oil processing capacity
of 505,000 barrels per day. Sunoco is also the General Partner and has a
34-percent interest in Sunoco Logistics Partners L.P., a publicly traded
master limited partnership which owns and operates 7,900 miles of
refined product and crude oil pipelines and approximately 40 active
product terminals. Sunoco has an 81-percent ownership interest in
SunCoke Energy, Inc., a publicly traded company which makes high-quality
metallurgical-grade coke for major steel manufacturers. SunCoke Energy
has facilities in the U.S. which have the capacity to manufacture
approximately 3.7 million tons of metallurgical-grade coke annually and
is the operator of, and has an equity interest in, a 1.7 million
tons-per-year cokemaking facility in Vitória, Brazil.
Haverhill Chemical LLC, an affiliate of Goradia Capital LLC, was formed
to acquire the Haverhill phenol plant from Sunoco and will be
headquartered in Houston, Texas. Goradia Capital acquires manufacturing
plants or participates in significant projects in the petrochemical
industry. Goradia Capital is affiliated with Vinmar International Ltd.
of Houston, a global polymer and petrochemical marketing and
distribution company with more than 26 offices in 23 countries.
