Galp and Moeve end talks to combine businesses after plan covering 3,500 service stations
Key Facts
Galp and Moeve ended negotiations over a possible combination of their downstream businesses after failing to reach an agreement, Galp said on October 26, 2026. The talks began with a non-binding understanding announced on January 8, and that initial announcement did not commit the companies to completing a deal. The companies said they had not agreed on final terms that met their criteria for a long-term, value-creating partnership. Galp’s chair said that “the commercial alignment needed to support a sustainable, value-creating partnership was not achieved.” The company maintained that the proposal’s strategic rationale remained compelling, without either company identifying a specific condition that prevented an agreement.
The proposal aimed to bring refining, chemicals and fuel retail activities together under two energy platforms on the Iberian Peninsula, named RetailCo and IndustrialCo. The proposed structure would have allowed the parties to consider dividing the activities between a retail company and an industrial company instead of combining them in a single entity. The initial understanding covered detailed discussions but remained non-binding. The proposed structure therefore did not become a final agreement or lead to joint operating arrangements. The issue under discussion was the possible combination of the companies’ downstream activities, not a change to Galp’s existing operations under the announcement.
On the retail side, RetailCo would have combined a network of about 3,500 service stations, most of them on the Iberian Peninsula. Galp estimated that combined sales of oil products to direct customers would exceed 6.5 million tonnes in 2025. The figures give a sense of the scale of activity that would have been brought together under the proposed retail platform, from stations to sales to direct customers. IndustrialCo would have included three industrial sites, with combined crude oil processing capacity of about 700,000 barrels per day. Galp was expected to retain a minority stake of more than 20% in the industrial company.
In July, Galp said discussions with Moeve shareholders Mubadala and Carlyle were progressing constructively and that both parties remained committed to pursuing an agreement in the second half of 2026. That was an update on the negotiating process, not an announcement that deal terms had been settled. In its July 13 update, Galp said a potential agreement was being targeted for the second half of the year, after its January announcement had forecast a deal by mid-2026. The company said any deal would need to deliver long-term value for all stakeholders and provide an appropriate financial, governance and operating framework for the combined businesses. The target period ended without an agreement, while the companies disclosed no new timeline or alternative negotiations in the available statements.
Galp’s data for the first nine months of 2026 showed that international activities accounted for 91% of total EBITDA, while the contribution from exports more than tripled from the comparable period to reach 640 million euros. The company highlighted exports as part of the contribution from international markets to its operating results, while it was discussing a reshaping of its downstream activities. But the announcement ending the talks did not change Galp’s investment thesis or capital allocation priorities, according to its statement. The company said the outcome “does not affect Galp’s existing operations or its confidence in the independent value-creation potential of its downstream portfolio.” It thereby confirmed that it would continue to assess its downstream portfolio on the basis of its ability to create value on a standalone basis.
The end of negotiations quickly weighed on Galp shares, which fell 7.5% in morning trading on October 26, Reuters reported, putting them among the worst performers on the STOXX 600. The report said the stock was on track for its biggest daily decline in 11 months. The move came on the day the talks ended, while Galp had scheduled the release of its third-quarter results for October 26. The available facts provide no additional figure for the share price at the close or its movement after morning trading. The previous update on the negotiations had tied any agreement to a suitable financial, governance and operating framework, but the parties disclosed no further details on why they could not reach one.