Danske Bank’s Ciaran McLaughlin is pictured with LCC directors Dan and Michael Loughran at the company’s oil terminal at Foyle Port
LCC Group, an energy firm based in Cookstown County Tyrone, has bought an oil terminal in Maydown, Co. Derry in a multi-million pound deal.
The family owned company built the terminal in 2005 in partnership with Norwegian oil giant Statoil ASA – known as LSS. It has recently bought out the oil giant to acquire full control over the facility.
Since closing the deal, LCC has secured an aviation contract with Q8 Aviation to supply EasyJet at Belfast International Airport with 135 million litres of fuel.
LCC, established as Lissan Coal Company in 1986, is family run and has diversified over the decades to distribute oil, electricity and gas. The company reported turnover of £544m in 2015 and employs more than 180 staff.
LCC Group director Dan Loughran, Director at LCC Group, said the acquisition of the oil terminal was strategically important for the company, as it will give it a “significant competitive advantage”.
“Logistically, transporting oil is expensive. It eats into profit margins, impacts on the environment and ultimately increases costs for customers,” he said.
“The LSS terminal is used to import and store oil to allow for smooth, efficient transport to markets in NI and ROI. By owning the terminal outright, LCC Group will be able to control our costs and pass those savings on to customers.”
The acquisition was supported by Danske Bank.
“In a process where the time frame to completion was a critical differentiator for LCC Group, Danske’s support in terms of the speed of credit approval, the structure of facilities, the overall level of support available, together with the management of the process to completion was essential to the success of this acquisition from our former joint venture partner,” Mr Loughran added.
Ciaran McLaughlin, corporate banking manager at Danske Bank, said LCC Group was an “excellent example of a locally-owned company that has demonstrated its ambition to grow”.
“LCC Group is a prime example of the type of trading businesses we at Danske are keen to support in their growth journey,” he said.
“The company has a strong track record of investment and Danske Bank was ready to provide support when the company was presented with this opportunity to further strengthen its business in the north-west.
“These types of high value infrastructure assets are normally owned by FTSE 100 corporations, not family-owned companies, so this transaction really demonstrates the scale of LCC Group’s ambitions for the future.”
For further information on the LCC Group, please visit: http://www.lccgroup.co.uk/
