- EET Retail is the retail division of Essar Energy Transition Fuels, established to build a nationwide network of premium, customer-focused service stations;
- Founded in 2016 by Graham Peacock and Susan Tobbell, SGN Retail manages 118 strategic roadside locations nationwide alongside leading retail, convenience, and food-to-go brands;
- The transaction adds 118 high-quality forecourt locations to EET Retail’s portfolio, complementing its fast-growing existing estate of 117 sites and creating a nationwide network of 235 forecourts;
- The facility from OakNorth forms part of a £250m senior debt facility arranged alongside seven other lenders.
London, 28th September, 2026: OakNorth, the digital bank for entrepreneurs, by entrepreneurs, has provided a bespoke loan to EET Retail, the retail division of Essar Energy Transition Fuels, to support its acquisition of leading UK independent forecourt network, SGN Retail. The facility from OakNorth forms part of a new £250m senior debt facility provided by a financing group comprising First Abu Dhabi Bank, Macquarie Bank, Mizrahi Tefahot Bank, Natixis, Royal Bank of Canada, SMBC Bank International and Sound Point Capital Management.
The acquisition adds SGN Retail’s 118 forecourt locations to EET Retail’s existing estate of 117 sites, creating a scaled nationwide network of 235 forecourts with annual throughput exceeding 650 million litres. The transaction will make EET Retail the UK’s second-largest backward-integrated forecourt operator and significantly accelerate its long-term ambition to grow its network to 800 sites by 2031.
The enlarged platform forms a key part of Essar Energy Transition’s strategy to integrate fuel production at its Stanlow refinery in Cheshire with a nationwide retail network. By increasing the amount of UK-refined fuel supplied directly to forecourts, EET Retail aims to create a more efficient refinery-to-pump supply chain while continuing to expand its convenience, food-to-go, valeting and EV charging proposition.
Viral Gathani, Head of Strategic Transactions at Essar Energy Transition, commented on the transaction: “This is a unique, best-in-class opportunity and advances a core part of our M&A strategy. The transaction is backed by a top-tier group of banks spanning four continents, several supporting the UK forecourt sector for the first time, underscoring confidence in our backward-integrated growth model and in the UK fuels and convenience markets. OakNorth was a highly engaged and supportive partner throughout the transaction, combining a strong understanding of our strategic ambitions with the flexibility and responsiveness required to deliver a transaction of this scale. We’re delighted to welcome them into our lending group as we enter this next phase of EET Retail’s growth.”
Navin Dabasia, Director of Debt Finance at OakNorth, added: “This is a strategically compelling transaction that brings together two highly complementary businesses to create a scaled, nationwide forecourt network. SGN Retail has built a high-quality portfolio of strategically located sites, while EET Retail benefits from the unique advantage of being integrated with Stanlow, one of the UK’s largest refineries. We’re delighted to be part of the financing group supporting EET Retail and Essar Energy Transition on this landmark acquisition and look forward to working with the team as they continue to grow the platform.”
ENDS
Notes to editors
About OakNorth
Launched in September 2015, OakNorth is the bank for entrepreneurs, by entrepreneurs. It was founded to address the persistent funding gap facing lower mid-market businesses – a segment that accounts for a significant share of economic output yet remains underserved by traditional banks.
To date, OakNorth has provided over $22bn in lending to thousands of entrepreneur-led businesses across the UK and US, supporting the creation of more than 70,000 jobs and generating more than £40bn in economic value. Throughout multiple economic cycles, the bank has maintained a highly disciplined approach to credit, delivering performance metrics that place it among the top 1% of commercial banks globally.
It is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.
Visit www.oaknorth.co.uk for more information.
About Essar Energy Transition
Essar Energy Transition’s vision is to be a leading producer of low carbon fuels and establish a major energy transition hub in the North-West of England. Essar Energy Transition has an investment pipeline of £4.3 billion to develop a range of low carbon energy transition projects in the UK until 2035. Essar Energy Transition’s investment programme will play a key role in accelerating the UK’s low carbon transformation, supporting the government’s decarbonisation policy and creating highly skilled employment opportunities at the heart of the North-West.
Essar Energy Transition Retail is the retail division of Essar Energy Transition Fuels (Essar Oil UK Ltd), established to build a nationwide network of premium, customer-focused service stations. Essar Energy Transition Fuels operates the Stanlow Manufacturing Complex in Cheshire, producing ~18% of UK transport fuels.
About SGN Retail
Founded in 2016 by Graham Peacock and Susan Tobbell, SGN Retail manages 118 strategic roadside locations nationwide alongside leading retail, convenience, and food-to-go brands.