Tesoro Wins Formal Approval to Buy BP SoCal Assets

SAN ANTONIO -- Tesoro Corp. cleared a few more hurdles in its bid to buy assets from BP plc.

The San Antonio-based refiner received formal approval from the California Attorney General and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to purchase BP's Carson City, Calif. refinery, according to Reuters.

"We are pleased the FTC has concluded its review and we can close this transformational acquisition as planned," said Tesoro President and CEO Greg Goff. "This transaction is a unique opportunity for Tesoro to combine the best aspects of two West Coast refining, marketing and logistics businesses, resulting in a more efficient world-scale integrated refining, marketing and logistics system."

Attorney General Kamala Harris said her office and the California Energy Commission would monitor gas prices, volume and refinery capacity. A deal with the company also provides for safeguards against price spikes.

The refinery purchase is part of a $2.5-billion agreement between the two oil giants that also moves BP's ARCO retail network across the Southwest to Tesoro. The deal includes approximately 800 dealer-operated sites in southern California, Nevada and Arizona, as CSNews Online previously reported.

Tesoro will also acquire the ARCO brand and associated registered trademarks, as well as a master franchisee license for the ampm convenience store brand. As part of the deal, BP will exclusively license the ARCO retail brand rights from Tesoro for northern California, Oregon and Washington and continue to produce transportation fuels at its Cherry Point, Wash., refinery. BP will also retain ownership of the ampm convenience store brand.

The deal is on schedule to close in the second quarter. The ARCO stations are expected to start transitioning to the Tesoro banner in June.