On June 8, shareholders of US-based natural gas and renewable natural gas (RNG) provider Clean Energy Fuels Corp. approved, by over 97 percent of the shares present at the company’s annual shareholders meeting, the purchase by Total Marketing Services S.A., a wholly owned subsidiary of France-headed oil and gas major Total S.A. (Total), of 50.8 million shares of company's common stock for gross proceeds of US$83.4 million.
The purchase and sale of the shares are expected to close on or about June 13, 2018. As previously announced, Total’s acquisition will represent 25 percent of Clean Energy’s outstanding shares and will make it Clean Energy Fuel’s largest shareholder.
This new partnership will combine one of the world’s leading energy companies that operate over 16 000 fueling stations with North America’s leading provider of natural gas and renewable natural gas (RNG) as a transportation fuel. The investment will also allow Total to nominate two members to Clean Energy’s board of directors.
This significant investment by Total, whose ambition is to become the Responsible Energy Major, is a confirmation of Clean Energy’s business plan to expand the use of clean natural gas as a transportation fuel, especially by those vehicles which consume the most fuel and cause the most pollution. The number one priority of the new partnership between the companies will be to make it easier for more heavy-duty truck fleets to transition away from diesel and adopt a cleaner, zero emissions natural gas fueling solution, said Andrew J. Littlefair, CEO and President of Clean Energy Fuels.
In a separate transaction, Clean Energy Fuels, with support from Total, expects to launch an innovative truck finance program to eliminate the incremental cost differential between the purchase of a natural gas truck equipped with the world’s cleanest engine and its diesel counterpart.
Expected to launch during the third quarter of 2018, the program would also guarantee a five-year fixed discounted price for Clean Energy-supplied natural gas fuel, allowing heavy-duty truck fleets to immediately achieve sustainability goals at the price and ease of operating diesel trucks. Total intends to provide up to US$100 million of credit support for the program.
