Global law firm Freshfields advises bp on its agreement to sell a 65% shareholding in Castrol to Stonepeak, at an enterprise value of $10 billion. This represents an implied EV / LTM EBITDA of around 8.6x reflecting the strength of the business and future growth potential. The transaction represents a significant milestone in bp’s commitment to accelerate its strategy, including simplifying the portfolio, strengthening the balance sheet, and focusing the downstream on its leading integrated businesses.

The transaction is anticipated to complete by end of  2026, subject to regulatory approvals. Upon completion of the transaction a new joint venture will be incorporated comprising a 65% Stonepeak and 35% bp ownership.

The global Freshfields team was led by partners Samira Afrasiabi and Rebecca Ward(M&A), May Smith (tax) and David Brooks (commercial IP) and includes:

Partners Alice Greenwell (employment), Andrew Murphy (pensions), Alastair Chapman (anti-trust), Vanessa Jakovich (environmental), Aled Batey and Haden Henderson (finance) and Julian Long (M&A).

Counsel:  Rikin Morjaria, Rose Swaffield, Piusha Bose and Richard Daniels

Associates: Sorcha Horrocks-Burns, Vanessa Bailey, Rebecca Webster, Lucy Carruthers, Rory Jones, Rohan Jerath, Jennifer Okoye, Samuel Sun, Sara Dube, Matt Del Giganti, Francesca Teng, Cameron Skinner, Ruth Coughlan, Jennifer King, Emily Rigler Gillingham, Saif Gilani, Murad Cholak, Ben Collins and Ariana Foley