In August 2025, Italy's Esso distributor network underwent a highly significant transformation, returning to national control after seven years of foreign ownership. The operation, worth 425 million euros, has brought back into Italian entrepreneurs' hands an arrangement that represents 6 per cent of the national fuel distribution market, with approximately 1,200 sales points capable of delivering 1.4 billion litres of fuel annually and generating total turnover of around two billion euros.
The binding agreement was signed in Rome on 11 August 2025 and involves the transfer of EG Italia, a subsidiary of British group EG Group, to a consortium of five Italian companies. The operation has been notified to the Competition and Market Authority and completion is expected by the end of the year, subject to approval from the relevant authorities. Mediobanca and Equita Mid Cap Advisory provided financial support for the transaction. On the seller's side, EG Group explained the decision as necessary to focus its activities on core markets and strengthen its balance sheet, using the proceeds to reduce debt.
Leading the acquisition was a consortium formed by five historic industry players, representing six entrepreneurial families that have operated in fuel distribution for decades. These include Pad Multienergy of Brescia, controlled by the Zani Ondelli and Petrolini families and exclusive licensee of the Shell brand in Italy, Vega Carburanti of Mestre, linked to the Vianello family and a pioneer in LPG distribution, Toil of Naples, led by the Toti family and particularly active in southern Italy, Dilella Invest of Bari, headed by the Dilella family with strong roots in Puglia, and Giap of Modica, belonging to the Minardo family, present since the 1970s with a network of 200 stations distributed throughout the country. According to consortium spokespersons Agostino Apa and Enrico Zampedri, the operation will enable new synergies to be generated and services offered to be expanded, with particular attention to the energy transition.
The return of the Esso network to Italian hands also has strong symbolic value, linked to the brand's long history in our country. The origins date back to 1891, when the Italian-American Oil Company (Siap) was founded in Venice, one of the first foreign affiliates of John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil Trust. Over the years, the company changed its name several times: Esso Standard Italiana in 1950 and, from 1972, Esso Italiana. In 2018, ExxonMobil decided to sell the Italian network to British group EG Group, which then owned over 6,300 service stations in ten countries.
The acquisition by the national consortium takes place within a context of profound transformation in the sector. Italy has 22,700 fuel distributors, the highest number in Europe, but demand for traditional products is set to decline by 15 per cent over the next twenty years. In this scenario, plant reconversion represents a crucial challenge. Service stations are indeed evolving into multifunctional hubs, with electric charging points, alternative fuels and additional services designed to meet the needs of future mobility.
