ENEOS Group to Acquire Multiple Downstream Businesses in Southeast Asia and Australia from Chevron

*Click here for details on the ENEOS Group’s Fourth Medium-Term Management Plan:

Medium-Term Management Plan | About the ENEOS Group | ENEOS Holdings

*Featured photo (left to right): Tomohide Miyata, Representative Director & CEO, ENEOS Holdings with Andy Walz, President of Chevron’s Downstream, Midstream and Chemicals.

About Andy Walz (Chevron)

Andy Walz has served as President of Chevron Corporation’s Downstream, Midstream, and Chemicals since October 2024. He oversees the global manufacturing, marketing, lubricants, chemicals, and additives businesses, as well as shipping, pipeline, and trading.

The ENEOS Group’s Business Platform Expands in Growth Markets

ENEOS Holdings will acquire, from various Chevron Group companies, 100% of equity interests in companies that engage in fuels and lubricants marketing businesses in Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Australia, Indonesia, and Vietnam, as well as a 50% equity interest in the Singapore Refining Company, which operates a refinery in Singapore.

This initiative is about more than simply expanding the scale of the Group’s overseas operations. While demand for petroleum continues to decline in Japan, demand in Southeast Asia is expected to grow. The ENEOS Group is aiming to capture new revenue opportunities in anticipation of this changing market environment by strengthening its business platforms in these growth markets, while also seeking to expand trading opportunities in Australia, a key export market for Japan.

A Strategic Move to Advance Portfolio Restructuring

The ENEOS Group has identified “transformation to a robust management structure” and “portfolio restructuring” as the two main pillars of its Fourth Medium-Term Management Plan. While strengthening its existing “base and materials” and “low-carbon” business areas, the Group has pursued growth opportunities through M&As. This acquisition of overseas businesses represents a landmark initiative that concretely puts that policy into action.

The businesses to be acquired in this transaction include not only sales networks for fuel oils and lubricants, but also cost-competitive export-oriented refineries and networks developed in each region. This will enable the Group to connect its business platforms in Japan with overseas assets, thereby optimizing the entire supply chain.

The History Linking ENEOS and Chevron

What is noteworthy about this announcement is the historical relationship between Nippon Oil, one of the precursors of the ENEOS Group, and Chevron. Immediately after World War II, Japanese oil companies faced restrictions on the import of crude oil and petroleum products, which severely limited their business activities. However, in anticipation of changes to the occupation policies, Nippon Oil began negotiations to form a partnership with Caltex, a joint venture between Standard Oil of California and The Texas Company (the predecessors of Chevron) that was primarily responsible for overseas business in the Middle East and Asia.

In March 1949, Nippon Oil signed a “Petroleum Products Consignment Sales Agreement” with Caltex. This brought Caltex petroleum products to the Japanese market, and the red star of Caltex’s iconic logo appeared at Nippon Oil’s gas stations. Subsequently, as gas stations evolved from mere fueling points into service stations offering oil changes and minor maintenances, the Caltex brand became a familiar sight on the streets of Japan.

This image shows the first gas station to feature the Caltex logo in 1949.

This partnership goes beyond business. The Nisseki Caltex Baseball Club, the predecessor to the ENEOS Baseball Club, was founded in 1950. It operated under the Caltex name until 1999, when it was renamed the Nisseki Mitsubishi Baseball Club. During that time, the team won the Intercity Baseball Tournament eight times, and the Caltex name became widely recognized throughout the history of the ENEOS Group not only in business, but also in sports and culture.

This initiative is also highly significant for the ENEOS Group in that it continues Chevron's business, with which it shares deep historical and cultural ties.

Connecting the Strengths of Chevron and the ENEOS Group to the Future

The approach to this initiative is to continue using the Caltex brand, which Chevron has built up over many years. Tomohide Miyata, Representative Director & CEO of ENEOS Holdings, has stated that the company aims to preserve and further enhance the brand value that Chevron has built based, on the belief that carrying forward a highly recognized and trusted brand in the Asia-Pacific region will be a major asset in ensuring a smooth business transition.

At the same time, the brand is not the sole source of value. The synergies generated by combining the ENEOS Group’s expertise in refinery operations, trading, and sales that have been cultivated over more than 100 years with Chevron’s experienced people and the networks and business platforms that have been built in each region are also considered to be of great value. The ENEOS Group will further enhance the competitiveness of the entire Group by comprehensively strengthening multifaceted functions such as procurement, logistics, sales, and trading.

The Next Stage of Growth Is Driven by Each Employee’s Efforts

The acquisition of these overseas businesses marks a crucial step for the ENEOS Group as it moves into its next stage of growth. However, the true value of the acquisition will be tested from this point forward. As preparations for the launch of the new organizational structure proceed, it is essential that the ENEOS Group carefully share its expertise and values while respecting people, cultures, and business histories of each country, thereby deepening mutual understanding. The proactive involvement of every employee is essential to ensuring a smooth and steady transition of these businesses.

The ENEOS Group values a mindset of embracing change and taking on challenges with a positive attitude. This project is not only an opportunity to welcome new businesses but also to evolve into a corporate group capable of competing on a global stage.

The ENEOS Group will build upon its technology, operational capabilities and trust cultivated in Japan, and combine them with the new assets and people joining from overseas. This acquisition of overseas businesses is a solid first step toward that future. Looking ahead, the ENEOS Group will continue to grasp changes in society and the market accurately, while aiming for sustainable growth and the enhancement of corporate value, over the medium to long term.