April 25, 2024 [Irish Examiner]- Canadian company Zenith Energy has completed the sale of the Whiddy Oil Terminal in West Cork to Dallas Company Sunoco in a deal worth €170m that includes the acquisition of an oil terminal in Amsterdam.

Sunoco said it has acquired 100% of the equity interest in Zenith Energy Netherlands Amsterdam BV and its subsidiary Zenith Energy Bantry Bay Terminal Ltd.

The company said the acquisition would create supply chain efficiencies for their US East Coast operations and align with an ongoing commitment to add stable midstream income.

With 17 oil storage tanks, Whiddy has a capacity of almost 9m barrels. It stores a significant portion of the State’s oil reserves with the National Oil Reserve Agency amongst its largest customers. The terminal is also situated in a strategic location on the western edge of Europe.

The Amsterdam terminal occupies a strategic position within the Port of Amsterdam, with Sunoco describing it as a pivotal hub for global energy trading.

“The Bantry Bay terminal is Ireland’s premier independent bulk liquids storage facility supporting the nation’s strategic oil reserves,” Sunoco said in a statement.

Most recent accounts filed by Zenith Energy Bantry Bay Terminal Ltd show the firm earned revenues of €20.8m in 2022, delivering a €1.3m profit. More than 30 people work at the site, viewed as a key element of the country’s energy infrastructure.

The Whiddy terminal has a long history. First developed by Gulf Oil in the late 1960s, it was transferred to State ownership following the explosion of the French tanker Betelgeuse in 1979 which killed 50 people.

The terminal along with the Whitegate oil refinery in Cork Harbour were operated by the State’s Irish National Petroleum Corporation up until 2001 when they were sold to US oil giant Tosco, which was later acquired by Phillips 66.

It was sold to Zenith in 2015 while Canadian firm Irving Oil purchased the Whitegate refinery in 2016. When Zenith acquired the Whiddy terminal in 2015, they said it would serve as a critical commercial link in northwest Europe for crude and refined products.

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