Situation
CHS Inc. (“CHS” or the “Company”), headquartered in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, is a Fortune 100 company that is a leading, global agribusiness owned by farmers, ranchers, and cooperatives located across the United States. The Company owns and operates two petroleum refineries and more than 2,500 miles of pipeline. CHS manufactures, markets, and distributes Cenex branded refined fuels, lubricants, propane, and renewable energy products through a network of more than 1,500 Cenex^® branded retail petroleum outlets in 19 states, including its Cenex Zip Trip chain of convenience stores.

CHS sought to divest 33 of its Cenex Zip Trip stores in Washington and Idaho but also desired to continue supplying Cenex-branded fuels to the stores.

Objective
To customize, execute, and complete a confidential, expedited sale process that would allow CHS to realize maximum value for the 33 Cenex Zip Trip stores in Washington and Idaho as well as to continue to supply the stores with Cenex-branded fuels after the closing.

Solution
Matrix provided merger and acquisition advisory services to CHS, which included valuation advisory, marketing the business through a confidential, structured sale process, and negotiation of the transaction.

Approximately one dozen competing offers from qualified buyers were received, and a subsidiary of Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: PARR) (“Par Pacific”) was selected as the acquirer.

As part of its continuing effort to connect with companies in the downstream energy and convenience retail sector to understand their business and growth objectives, Matrix had previously met with Par Pacific in 2017. This led to Matrix advising CHS to include Par Pacific on the potential buyer list despite the fact that they owned no retail assets in the continental U.S. prior to this transaction.

As part of the transaction, CHS and Par Pacific entered into branded petroleum marketing agreement for the continued supply of Cenex-branded fuels to the stores. Matrix assisted in the negotiation of the purchase agreement and the associated fuel supply agreements and coordinated the due diligence process.

The transaction closed in March 2018, six months after Matrix was retained by CHS.