The Competition Bureau has reached agreements with Parkland Corp. and Federated Co-operatives Ltd. (FCL) on the proposed acquisition of Husky gas stations in southern Ontario and Western Canada.
Parkland and FCL had entered into separate agreements in December 2021 to buy 337 Husky retail gas stations located across Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia from Cenovus Energy Inc.
The new agreements, the details of which were released on Thursday, will require Parkland and FCL to sell a certain number of stations in markets like Hamilton, Ont. and Gimli, Man. The bureau said there was a potential risk of a “substantial lessening of competition in the supply of fuel to consumers.”
The Competition Bureau also said FCL will need to transfer the ownership of certain gas stations to Parkland, in markets such as Estevan, Sask. and Dauphin, Man.
“Competition in the retail gas sector is an area of significant concern for Canadians,” said Commissioner of Competition Matthew Boswell, in the press release.
“These agreements will preserve competition in southern Ontario and Western Canada and protect consumers from paying higher prices at the pumps. We remain vigilant and will continue to take action to address competition concerns in this important sector of the Canadian economy.”
In 2021, Cenovus announced it would be selling the 337 gas stations it acquired in its takeover of Husky Energy Inc.
Cenovus planned to sell the fuel network for $420 million, while keeping the commercial fuels business for itself.
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