Shell Indonesia to transfer gas station business to Citadel and Sefas JV

JAKARTA, May 23 (Reuters) - Shell Indonesia has agreed to sell ownership of its gas station business to a joint venture between Citadel Pacific Limited and Sefas Group, but will keep its lubricant business, the company said on Friday.

Shell said the deal, which includes around 200 gas stations in Indonesia and a fuel storage terminal in the city of Gresik, is expected to be completed by next year and is part of a strategy to transform its portfolio.

"Following completion, the Shell brand will remain in Indonesia through brand licencing agreements," the company said in a statement.

Citadel Pacific is a Philippines-based private holding company with businesses in various industries including aviation-related services, telecommunication, gas distribution, and fuel marketing.

The firm is currently Shell's brand licencee in Guam, Saipan, Republic of Palau, Macau and Hong Kong, while Sefas Group is the largest Shell lubricants distributor in Indonesia, according to the statement.

Citadel Pacific and Sefas Group did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Shell said Indonesia remains a key growth market for its lubricants business where it owns and operates a lubricants oil blending plant with capacity of up to 300 million litres annually and a grease manufacturing plant under construction.