DCC expands US gas business with acquisition in Connecticut

Diversified energy and services group DCC has further expanded its US liquefied petroleum gas business by acquiring a company headquartered in Connecticut.

DCC said on Monday it had acquired NES Group, which markets, sells and delivers propane and other products and services to residential and commercial customers. The company employs about 70 staff and has more than 22,000 active customers.

The acquisition is DCC’s second “material bold-on” in the US for its liquefied petroleum gas business, following the acquisition of Pacific Coast Energy in April 2019. The company now has operations across 14 US states.

The group also recently agreed to acquire Primagaz in the Netherlands, a deal that is subject to competition authority approval. Primagaz serves about 10,000 customers, and the transaction is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of this year.

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The combined value of the two transactions is about £60 million (€65 million).

"These transactions, which were originated, diligenced and executed during a period of ongoing Covid-19 restrictions, demonstrate our ability to successfully build our business in an uncertain environment," said DCC chief executive Donal Murphy.

Flo Gas

DCC is a global business with significant market presence in 10 countries in Europe, Asia and the US. It would be best known to Irish consumers through the Flo Gas brand.

Results for the latest full year for DCC show that 64 per cent of its liquefied petroleum gas sales were in continental Europe, while Ireland accounted for 10 per cent, Britain for 15 per cent and the rest of the world for 11 per cent.

The company entered the US market in 2017, when it acquired Retail West LPG based on an enterprise value of $200 million. At that time, the company said it was part of its strategy to build a global liquefied petroleum gas business over time. The company also noted that the US market was highly fragmented, with more than 4,000 liquefied petroleum gas distribution businesses operating in the market.