Posted at 11:22 a.m., Thursday, January 2, 2003
Tesoro sells some stations in Hawai'i
Advertiser Staff and News Services
SAN ANTONIO Tesoro Petroleum Corp., which is trying to raise cash and avoid loan defaults, agreed to sell 30 service stations, including five in Hawai'i, to a joint venture property company for about $41 million.The stations in Hawai'i, Alaska, Idaho and Utah were sold to Skyline-Fri 7 TSO LP, which is owned by closely held partners Skyline Pacific Properties and Franchise Realty Investments, the company said in a statement. Tesoro will use half the proceeds to pay off debt.
Tesoro operates 35 stations on O'ahu, Maui and the Big Island. There will be no change in operations at the five Hawai'i stations as Tesoro is leasing them back from the Skyline joint venture.
"It should be a seamless transition from an operations point of view and a customer point of view," said Nathan Hokama, a Tesoro Hawai'i spokesman.
Tesoro has sold a total of 100 service stations this month and an oil-products pipeline to raise more than $200 million. The company's goal was to sell $167 million in assets by year-end under a deal with lenders to buy more time and ease terms on $1.28 billion in debt.
The company's debt soared to $2.05 billion at the end of September after acquisitions that doubled refining capacity. Tesoro this month sold 70 service stations in Northern California to three buyers for $67 million and the Kaneb Pipe Line Operating Partnership LP for $100 million.
