Investment firm Carlyle Group acquires 37% stake in Spain’s Cepsa
Global investment firm The Carlyle Group has completed the acquisition of a 37% stake in Compañía Española de Petróleos, S.A.U (Cepsa) from Mubadala Investment Company, the Abu Dhabi-based sovereign investor. The transaction was announced on 8 April 2019.
Mubadala will remain the majority shareholder in Europe’s largest privately-owned integrated energy company, which is headquartered in Madrid, Spain, holding the remaining 63%.
The composition of Cepsa’s Board of Directors reflects the new shareholding, with Mubadala entitled to appoint five members to the Board, including its chairman, and Carlyle to appoint three members. In addition, there will continue to be one independent member and the company’s chief executive officer will complete the board’s composition.
In parallel with the new shareholder partnership, Carlyle and Mubadala have named Philippe Boisseau as CEO to succeed Pedro Miro, who will be retiring. Boisseau is a seasoned industry leader with an extensive track record of more than 30 years, notably with the Total Group, where he served in senior leadership roles in France, the Middle East, the United States and Argentina.
“We are pleased to have completed the transaction and look forward to working closely with Carlyle and Cepsa’s management on growing the business and creating even greater value from its portfolio and operations,” said Musabbeh Al Kaabi, CEO, Petroleum & Petrochemicals, Mubadala, and chairman of Cepsa.
“I want to thank Pedro Miro, especially, for his long and dedicated service to Cepsa. He has played a vital role in developing Cepsa in recent years to become one of Spain’s leading companies and a business that is looking strong for the future. I also want to welcome our incoming CEO Philippe Boisseau, who will be leading the company’s next phase of growth. Philippe is well known to Mubadala from his time in the Middle East with one of our long-term partners and we are pleased to have him on board.”
Marcel van Poecke, head of Carlyle International Energy Partners and Vice-Chairman of Cepsa, commented: “Cepsa is an attractive, well-positioned international integrated energy player led by Pedro and his strong leadership team. We are pleased Philippe Boisseau has agreed to become CEO as he has an impressive range of skills and leadership in the international energy sector. I know he will work closely with Pedro and the Cepsa leadership team in the coming weeks to ensure a smooth and successful leadership transition. Carlyle remains excited about its role as an investor, along with Mubadala, in Cepsa.”
Cepsa operates assets across the full petroleum value chain in more than 20 countries, delivering through-the-cycle earnings resilience and also operates in the renewables sector.
The company’s upstream assets include significant reserves contained in both the Umm Lulu and SARB fields located offshore Abu Dhabi. Cepsa is also a significant oil producer in Algeria and operates in South America and Southeast Asia.
Cepsa’s retail business includes an extensive network of service stations across the Iberian Peninsula and an integrated energy offering to Spanish consumers, covering liquid fuels, gas and electricity.
The company owns and operates two refineries in Spain and has committed significant capital to ensure they remain among the most efficient in Europe and well-positioned to respond to the new IMO quality and emissions requirements when they take effect on January 2020.
Cepsa is also the global leader in the production of linear alkylbenzene (LAB), a key component in the manufacture of biodegradable detergents and the second-largest producer of phenol and acetone.
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