Ipiranga owner Ultrapar explores sale of fuel retail business
Potential buyers include TotalEnergies, Saudi Aramco and J&F as the company eyes a major divestment.
Brazil’s Ultrapar group is exploring a sale of its fuel retail business, Ipiranga, one of the leading service station brands in the country. The move would represent one of the country’s largest downstream transactions in two decades.
TotalEnergies, Saudi Aramco and J&F Investimentos have held early discussions with the company, as reported by O Globo. Ultrapar has hired BTG Pactual to support the process, although the likelihood of a transaction remains unclear.
Ultrapar has become more active in mergers and acquisitions after restructuring its core businesses over the past five years and acquiring logistics operator Hidrovias do Brasil. In addition, Brazil’s recent crackdown on tax evasion in the fuel sector has shown profitability rising for formal distributors, prompting renewed interest from global companies traditionally discouraged by the country’s high levels of informality.
Regarding sales and opportunity estimates, Goldman Sachs estimates Ipiranga could generate around R$4.2 billion ($830 million) in EBITDA in 2026. Bradesco BBI projects a potential valuation range of R$25 billion to R$30 billion ($4.9 billion to $5.9 billion).
Questions remain over how Ultrapar would deploy proceeds from a sale. Market speculation has pointed to a possible minority investment in rail operator Rumo. Local analysts suggest the Group could be considering larger strategic moves, such as a full acquisition of Rumo or taking Hidrovias do Brasil private.
Ipiranga is Brazil’s third‑largest fuel distributor, with more than 6,000 service stations and over 7,000 large corporate clients across the country. Its network includes the AmPm and Jet Oil franchise brands as well as KMV, a nationwide loyalty program with 38 million participants.
