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TWENTY-THREE YEARS after Applegreen opened its first forecourt in Ballyfermot, the company’s two founders should soon be sitting on a €200 million share pile.
The petrol station chain hopes to raise about €70 million selling shares to institutional and other investors as part of plans to float on both the London and Irish stock exchanges in late June.
It was set up in 1992 by its current chief executive Bob Etchingham and chief operations office Joe Barrett. At the end of last year, its network of forecourts extended to 152 sites, including 96 in the Republic or Ireland, 54 in the UK and two in the US.
The company, which will officially be rebranded from Petrogas Global to Applegreen as part of the float, plans to offer up at least 25% of its shares for sale which would put a total value of about €280 million on the firm.
The entirety of its existing shares are held by a company called B&J Holdings, which is based in Malta.
Applegreen’s last company filings show three-quarters of the shares belonged to Etchingham with the balance owned by Barrett, which means the pair between them will still hold a slice worth over €200 million if the share sale is successful.
Growth plans
Etchingham said the float would provide a platform for the company’s long-term growth plans.
We believe there are significant opportunities for expansion across the Republic of Ireland and the UK. The group is well positioned to benefit from recovering economic growth and increased disposable income in the Republic of Ireland and the UK, as well as favourable market trends as the oil majors exit the forecourt market.”
Last year the company turned over €937 million for earnings of €22.8 million. That was up from €804.5 million and a pre-tax profit of €10.1 million in 2013.
Its Irish forecourt network gave it a 12% share of the country’s total fuel market, however it is currently only a tiny player in the UK.
Applegreen said it planned to use the money from the share sale to upgrade and rebrand existing sites, and speed up its expansion.
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I hear Malta is an excellent place to have your headquarters.
Even better than Dublin?
Wouldn’t it be great to live in Malta and dictate the running of a different country from there, imagine!!
Dublin is an excellent place to have your legal department.
Who are these Dublin based people that are profiting from gagging an entire nation?
#jesuisCatherine
Easy raise the Army of the Land now -
Enda cuts Reps , small farmers dole, tries to close and steal their bogs and all the while Menace and Lar the Goose and others clean out the largest property portfolio in the World ….
Matthew Elderfield – where’s he now ?
A court injunction is blocking me from commenting on this article.
Me too
Me three
Mono…doh!
I would presume that The Journal would only love to be able to run with the story. My guess is that it is trying to protect its staff in the scenario where Denis O’ Brien would take legal action and potentially cripple the company. Though Broadsheet are giving him the finger…One thing is for certain though. Catherine Murphy deserves an almighty amount of credit for her work.
The only seat guarenteed in the GE
They haven’t the balls of the South African press when they were reporting on Zuma’s mansion …
“I don’t mind going to court at all lads , but sure I have the judge bought ” ….. A. Tyrant.
I wonder if a telecommunications company gave free phones to politicians could it access State secrets and manipulate accordingly ?
Denis O Brien.
[REDACTED]
Fixed that for you!
Uh uh no comments on DOB yet!!!
#redacted
I’d hate to have a child called Denis cause people might think he’s a Menace !
Delta Oscar Bravo
Menace O’ Brien ….
can’t redact that mo-fos !
#Denis O’Brien
Ha ha its like harry potter. We have our very own , he who must not be named, are you happy now government , we are now a nation living the story of a children’s book.
“Call him Voldemort, Harry. Always use the proper name for things. Fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself.” -
Denis O’Brien
Queer name that !
Censorship is the suppression of free speech. Seriously considering deleting this app in protest. The corporate corruption supporters can have it. You can’t hide behind EU laws forever.
I wonder does Applegreen have on their board of directors a former Taoiseach who presided over the national collapse, like Topaz has?
I can’t quite see what experience a solicitor from the midlands has in flogging petrol, so I am just curious as to what the industry norms are.
Incidentally,Topaz is controlled by a certain non resident businessman.
Just wondering, like…
http://businessetc.thejournal.ie/topaz-brian-cowen-1445910-May2014/
He isn’t actually pumping petrol, so don’t know what point you’re trying to make. He was a former finance minister so I’m sure that he has done expertise to offer. Just as, for example, Charlie McGreavey on the board of Ryanair.
In the name of. Just to highlight again how remote you are from what’s happening in the country. While you were commenting on how cheap health insurance had become in an earlier post, the 18% hike was simultaneously being discussed on the news at one.
I can therefore conclude that you are either a member of the fg spin team, or you live on mars.
Health insurance available from €295. Some policies have increased. Some are cheaper.
In The name Of….. “He was a former finance minister so I’m sure that he has some expertise to offer.”
I think as finance minister he showed either how bloody clueless he was…..or how corrupt.
Now that he works for gag-man……I’d assume the latter.
Ha ha . are you for real , in the name of. Brian cowen was finance minister so your sure he has expertise to offer. This was the man in charge when Ireland was brought to its knees. This is the man who was finance minister of a government that destroyed this country and wrecked the economy. Now why would any one want to employ a man with his record. That you have to wonder.
Yet the good people of Ireland voted them in 3 times in a row and took all the money they offered!
The difference in the name of. Is back then no one knew what was going on . no one foresaw the collapse , or the economy being wrecked. But we all know now. But yet topaz hired him and put him on the board after all of this. You don’t find this strange.
You can’t manipulate a population with lies from thieves and then blame them for believing them – it makes them very vengeful ……….
Or to put it simply – People made their mortgage calculations without allowing for all the taxes that Enda and Brian Cowen have heaped on them since to guarantee their monumental fook-up was covered up by placing Nama in the freedom of Information Omerta !
I just have a problem with the way members of the Dail came that anything they say under Dail Privilege is their democratic right. Well if they are so sure they are right and it’s the “People of Ireland” that demand they are entitled to have their say , then say it outside of the Dail. And if they are telling “untruths” they will have to stand by them and not hide behind a cloak of invisibility. ..
#jesuisdennisredacted
Denis O’Brien has stubborn understains
well done on the Journal in copying and pasting this story from todays Irish Independant.
This is starting to get Redactulous at this stage
Wow. A good news story and the Begrudgers are out in force.
It’s complete and utter trolling I don’t know why the journal isn’t removing the comments.
They might actually support the actions but their hands are legally tied.
Begrudgery is a Nation’s wisdom to prevent the rise of Ego-centric Menaces in society ….
“Behind every fortune there is a crime !”
Delta Oscar Bravo Call U Next Tuesday
Donald Trump.
More profit in Lucozade then Petrol
Are you people trying to tell me that D O B owns Applegreen please please Noooooooooooo. Please someone answer quickly and put me out of my misery.
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