European Commission approves SOCAR deal to buy Italiana Petroli

BAKU. Feb 19 (Interfax) - The European Commission has approved the acquisition by State Oil Company of the Azerbaijani Republic (SOCAR) of a 99.82% stake in Italiana Petroli (IP) from API Holding, the EC said in a press release.

The transaction primarily concerns the supply of crude oil and petroleum products, the EC said.

The EC concluded that the acquisition would not raise competition concerns, given the limited market position it will have as a result, and therefore the review was carried out under the simplified merger procedure.

The Swiss-registered SOCAR Energy Holdings AG concluded the deal on SOCAR's behalf.

SOCAR signed an agreement to acquire 98.82% of the shares of Italiana Petroli from API Holding in September 2025.

Italiana Petroli is one of the largest integrated downstream platforms in Italy. The company owns thousands of gas stations across the country and two oil refineries with annual capacity of around 10 million tonnes. It sells specialized products such as bitumen, aviation fuel and lubricants, and has a logistics system covering the entire country.

IP Group was founded in 1933 with its headquarters in Rome. It is fully owned by the Brachetti-Peretti family.

Italian media have reported that the deal would give SOCAR control over a network of more than 4,600 filling stations under the IP brand, as well as oil refining capacities. The total cost of the deal is estimated at approximately 3 billion euros.

SOCAR, advised by Intesa Sanpaolo IMI CIB, prevailed over other contenders for the purchase of Italiana Petroli including Switzerland's Gunvor and the UAE's Bin Butti Group.