JOBBERSWORLD...MARKET INTELLIGENCE FOR INTELLIGENT MARKETERS...         

Total Energy, LLC (Part of the Santoro family of Companies) acquired the assets of Ocean State Oil, a leading lubricant marketer in Southern New England on August 1st 2012.  

This is a particularly significant and interesting acquisition, in part, due to the size and geographic reach of the aggregate companies.

Established in 1973, Ocean State Oil is one of the leading marketers of lubricants in the Southern New England region. The company operates a state of the art facility in Quonset Point, RI. This facility houses 50,000 square feet of space dedicated to lubricants, over one half million gallons of indoor bulk storage, and rail siding. They operate a fleet of 18 trucks, which includes the first Lube master vehicles in New England.

"The Santoro Family is excited about the opportunities created by the acquisition of Ocean State Oil and how the combination compliments its other operations in New England, Santoro Oil, in RI and CK Smith/Superior in Worcester MA," says John Santoro, Vice President of Total Energy, LLC.

The Santoro family also operates Domestic Fuels and Lubes, a leading distributor of diesel fuels, gasoline and Chevron motor oils and lubricants servicing Southeast Virginia and Northeast North Carolina.

Ocean State Oil is the only 1st Source Elite Distributor for Chevron Lubricants in New England. Another reason why this is an interesting acquisition is the stronger relationship Total Energy (Santoro Family Co) appears to now have with Chevron Lubricants. In 2012 Domestic Fuels anticipates achieving the 1st Source Elite status with Chevron Lubricants. Total Energy's acquisition of Ocean State Oil will strengthen the partnership between Chevron Lubricants and the Santoro Family of Companies.

The Santoro's purchase of Ocean State, "provides an instant platform fully staffed with a winning team," says John Santoro. Further he adds, "No changes in personnel or management are planned."

The former owner of Ocean State Oil, Dan Bell will remain with the company and continue to have a vested interest in the venture. To this point, John Santoro says, "We are pleased to announce, it's business as usual!"

Mike Miller joined the company as President, following the retirement of Rich Hasten. Mr. Miller brings 30 years of experience in leadership and business management to Western Marketing. Previously, he was President and Chief Operating Officer of Blue Sun Energy, a manufacturer and marketer of branded fuels in the Rocky Mountains and Pacific Northwest.  

Michael Miller President Western Marketing Inc.

Before joining Blue Sun, Mike spent a decade overseas with Castrol and later British Petroleum where he ran successively larger lubricant businesses in South East Asia and led Castrol's downstream entry in Indonesia. His earlier years of broad-based financial and strategic experiences included roles with both PepsiCo and Ford.

Also joining the Western Marketing team as a member of its Board of Directors is Chris Haire. Previously, Mr. Haire initiated and completed the management buyout of FINA Lubricants to create LUBRICANTS USA (LUSA), which he later sold to TOTAL SA. Following the sale, Mr. Haire served as President and CEO of LUSA's successor company, TOTAL Lubricants USA Southwest. Mr. Haire retired at year-end 2009. Earlier in his career, Mr. Haire was a senior manager of FINA Oil and Chemical Company's downstream marketing operations and spent 11 years in progressive assignments with Phillips Petroleum Company, notably graduating from Phillips' Executive Management training program and serving as Director of Strategic Planning.

Robert Sullivan, Co-Chairman of Western Marketing commented, "We are pleased to have added two such talented leaders to our team. Mike brings exceptional leadership and business management skills and has a style that fits great with Western Marketing's sales driven culture. Chris brings a strong industry perspective to our board and provides excellent strategic input to our company." Jason Reed, Co-Chairman of Western Marketing added, "The addition of Mike and Chris will help us pursue our strategy of rapid growth, both organic and through acquisition." "We are pursuing acquisitions in and around our existing Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Louisiana foot print", he added.

About Western Marketing: Western Marketing is a leading distributor of lubricants including heavy-duty motor oil, specialized industrial lubricants, natural gas engine oil with market leading positions in Texas and Oklahoma. Western Marketing is majority owned by Wingate Partners and CrimStone Partners, Dallas-based private equity groups.