Tosco Reaches Deal To Purchase Circle K

Circle K Corp., a leading convenience store chain purchased by foreign investors nearly three years ago, is returning to U.S. ownership under a $900 million deal announced Friday.

Tosco Corp., an American petroleum refiner, will buy the chain controlled by Investcorp SA, a Luxembourg-based company that has holdings in other U.S. properties including Saks Fifth Avenue and Tiffany & Co.

For Tosco, a $7 billion independent refiner, the acquisition will help fulfill its goal of becoming a major gas station operator. Most of Circle K’s nearly 2,000 outlets sell gasoline. Tosco, which owns 130 convenience stores, will convert them to the Circle K name.

The agreement provides for a payment of $710 million in cash and stock, plus the assumption of Circle K debt, raising the value of the deal to more than $900 million.