DCC, one of the leading fuel distribution companies in Ireland, has agreed to buy Jones Oil for an undisclosed amount
DCC’s Energy division, which trades in Ireland under the Emo brand, notified the transaction to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) last Friday.
Jones Oil supplies home heating oil and commercial fuels to the agricultural, commercial, industrial and marine sectors from 15 depots in the east, midlands and north-west of the country.
The company, founded in 1984, is 100pc Irish-owned and headquartered in Dublin.
It has 150 staff and a fleet of 45 tanker trucks.
Jones Oil had €138m in turnover in 2019, the most recent year for which accounts are available.
That was a 13.5pc increase on the prior year.
The business made €1m in pretax profit and had total equity of just over €5m at the end of 2019.
Chief executive Pat Nevin owns 60pc of the shares in Jones Oil while finance director Paul Curran holds 30pc. Des Broderick, chief executive of Appian Fasteners, owns the remaining 10pc, a residual holding from the management buy-out of Jones Group in 1998.
DCC is a diversified industrial holdings company that specialises in distribution and marketing.
One of the biggest Irish companies by value with a market capitalisation of £6.25bn (€7.21bn), it is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a member of the FTSE 100 index of large companies.
The company is highly acquisitive and has spent £3.3bn on 280 bolt-on acquisitions in the last 26 years since the company floated on the stock market.
Two-thirds of its profit growth historically comes from mergers and acquisitions activity.
Three-quarters of DCC’s profits come from the distribution of fuel, with the remainder coming from its healthcare and technology divisions.
Although DCC is a key player in the Irish fuel market, just 5pc of its overall fuel sales are here, with the rest mainly in the UK and Continental Europe, where the group has expanded aggressively in the last decade.
DCC reports final results on May 18 for the financial year ending March 31, 2021.
The transaction is in the preliminary investigation phase with the CCPC and third parties have until May 18 to make submissions.
DCC declined to make a comment on the transaction.
