Susser Commences Wholesale Fuels IPO

HOUSTON -- Susser Holdings Corp. plans to sell 9.5 million units of its Susser Petroleum Partners LP wholesale fuels business via an initial public offering (IPO).

According to media reports, Susser Petroleum expects to sell units in the new company, formed as a master limited partnership (MLP), for between $19 and $21 per unit. Therefore, Susser Holdings could raise as much as $200 million in the offering, which it could use to build or acquire convenience store and pay outstanding debt.

The 9.5 million shares will represent 43.4 percent of Susser Petroleum. The underwriters of the IPO, BofA Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Wells Fargo Securities and UBS Investment Bank also have a 30-day option to purchase an additional 1.425 million units, or 6.5 percent of Susser Petroleum.

Susser Petroleum Partners will trade under the New York Stock Exchange symbol SUSP. It will distribute more than 1.4 billion gallons of motor fuel annually from independent refiners and major oil companies to Susser Holdings' Stripes c-stores, which are located in Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Louisiana.

To qualify for MLP status, a partnership must generate at least 90 percent of its income from what the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) deems "qualifying" sources. Those qualifying sources include activities related to the production, processing or transportation of oil, natural gas and coal.