Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. has struck a deal to acquire up to 322 retail sites in southern California from ExxonMobil , bolstering the presence of its Circle K network of convenience stores in the region.
The agreement is a bit of a consolation prize for Laval, Que.-based Couche-Tard, which failed in its hostile bid last year to acquire the 1,500-store Casey's General Stores chain in the U.S. Midwest.
Financial terms of the proposed transaction with ExxonMobil are not being disclosed, Couche-Tard said in a news release Monday.
The company said the newly acquired units will be folded into its Circle K West Coast Division.
Couche-Tard is North America's largest independent convenience-store operator in terms of company-operated stores. It boasts a total of 5,874 stores, 4,169 of which offer gas, in 42 states and the District of Columbia.
It is Canada's largest convenience-store operator; banners include Couche-Tard in Quebec and Mac's in Ontario.
Bertrand Marotte