Speedway Gas Stations In Minnesota Changing Ownership Again After Just Two Years

Marathon Petroleum which is based in Ohio and is the largest U.S. independent refiner announced yesterday that it has sold it's Speedway Gas Stations to a parent company of 7-11 based in Japan for $21 billion in cash. Marathon has been struggling financially and has been trying to sell off the Speedway stores for months.

Speedway was one of the country's biggest convenience store chains with almost 4,000 stores nationwide. With the addition of the Speedway stores 7-11 will now have around 14,000 stores nationwide.

According to The Star Tribune "The spinoff underlines the current turmoil in oil refining. Struggling with lower sales, Marathon announced last week that it would not restart two refineries in New Mexico and California that it had idled in April."

Before the buyout Minnesota was one of only 14 states that did not have any 7-11 stores, but with the buyout of Speedway that could change with an estimated 285 stores in Minnesota, Wisconsin and North and South Dakota that were all previously Super America stores. Speedway employs around 40,000 people.

According to Bring Me The News "SuperAmerica had its roots in Minnesota, with the brand's first store opening in St. Paul in 1960. 7-Eleven did have a presence in Minnesota till 1989, when the franchisee filed for bankruptcy and 66 stores were sold to SuperAmerica."

According to a press release from 7-Eleven CEO Joe DePinto he said "This acquisition is the largest in our company's history and will allow us to continue to grow and diversify our presence in the U.S., particularly in the Midwest and East Coast. By adding these quality locations to our portfolio, 7‑Eleven will have the opportunity to bring convenience to more customers than ever before."