Dutchess Terminals Exits Convenience & Fuels Business
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. — Dutchess Terminals Inc. and its related entities are changing hands.
The Poughkeepsie-based company sold to Gill Energy, headquartered in Matawan, N.J. The assets, all located in the Hudson Valley of New York, consist of a portfolio of 13 company-controlled, branded retail gas locations with convenience stores, and numerous wholesale motor fuel accounts. The sale also includes a fleet of motor fuel delivery trucks, absorbed by GE affiliate Apollo Logistics, and branded supply contracts from CITGO, Valero and bp.
Dutchess was founded in 1984 when Russo Vosoughi purchased a single retail gas station in Yonkers and created the CENCO fuel brand. Over the next 40 years the company continued to build its portfolio of retail gas sites in Dutchess and Putnam counties of New York, and developed a wholesale business which now stretches throughout New York State.
[Read more Mergers and Acquisitions news here]
Additionally, Dutchess established Express Fuel to provide heating oil to retail customers, becoming one of the largest home heating oil and motor fuel distributors in the Hudson Valley. Express Fuel's heating oil business and assets were previously sold in 2021.
Petroleum Equity Group (PEG) provided merger and acquisition advisory services to Dutchess, which included valuation analysis, marketing the assets through a confidential process, and assisting with negotiating the transaction.
"The decision to sell was a difficult one following such a long history in the industry, however, I felt that the timing was right," said Russo Vosoughi, president of Dutchess. "We had an outstanding experience working with PEG. Their expert advisory and analytical skills, extensive industry knowledge and professionalism, along with PEG's relationships with buyers, was instrumental in helping us successfully monetize our motor fuel-related assets. I could not have found a better advisor to guide me through a transaction of this scale and complexity."
The project was managed by Ken Shriber, managing director of PEG.
"Mr. Vosoughi, whom I have known for several years, has built an exceptional motor fuel and convenience store business. It was an absolute privilege to finally work closely with him on this project," Shriber said. "I am appreciative of the trust that was placed in my firm throughout the entire process and honored to have been engaged to help the company achieve this favorable outcome."
Gill Energy is a family-owned fuel distribution and convenience retail company. What began in 1991 as a single Mobil-branded site has grown into one of the largest independent fuel distributors in the Northeast, with locations in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.
Gill Energy is a branded distributor for Sunoco, BP, Conoco, 76, Phillips 66, ExxonMobil, Shell, Gulf, CITGO, Valero and Marathon, and supplies unbranded fuels to service stations, fleet operators, commercial businesses and industrial customers.
"We are thrilled to be the acquirer of the company's assets, and our team worked tirelessly with PEG and [Dutchess] to ensure a smooth transition," said Bikram Gill, CEO of Gill Energy. "This acquisition adds a very desirable set of wholesale and retail sites in new markets which complement our existing network in New Jersey."