Repsol YPF

Europe and North Africa

Repsol YPF has a presence in Spain, Portugal, South of France and Morocco. The strategy applied in these countries, which allows the company to distinguish itself from the other operators', is that of offering the client a maximum quality product and excellent service. In Spain, Repsol YPF distributes LPG in bottled form, in bulk and channeled via group distribution networks.

The bottled product is distributed through a network of 660 distribution agencies with national coverage, which deliver the product to the final client's home in a maximum of 48 hours following order placement. The company has approximately 10 million clients, representing almost the entire market; this makes Repsol Butano the largest European company with respect to the distribution of bottled LPG in terms of both profits and volume. Repsol Butano also distributes propane in bulk to individual facilities (Tailor-made Plan) or group distribution networks (channeled propane facilities and residential area infrastructure) to private, business and industrial clients. These sales have represented 31.7% of the total. The price for bottles of less than 8 kg is set freely.

In France and Portugal, Repsol YPF distributes LPG in bottled and bulk form; in 2005, these sales reached 17,331 and 133,036 t, respectively. In these countries, the company has adopted a mixed model of distribution of bottled gas, with a point-of-sale presence and an emphasis on delivery service. The bulk business focuses on small clients and domestic use with business formulas similar to the Tailor-made Plan. The French and Portuguese markets are completely deregulated and companies operating in the sector set prices freely (approximately double the Spanish market prices), as a function of international raw materials prices, internal costs of distribution and existing competition.

At the end of 2004, Repsol YPF acquired Shell's LPG business in Portugal, constiting in Shell Gas (LPG) and its subsidiaries Spelta in Madeira (100%) and SAAGA in the Azores (25%). This acquisition allowed Repsol YPF to increase its market share from 5% at the end of 2004 to 21% in 2005, with the total sales corresponding to that year coming to 179,087 t, and thus become the number three company in that market sector. The acquisition included business assets in both bottled gas and bulk operations, and two bottling plants in Matosinhos and Banatica, with a joint storage capacity of 6,600 t.

Repsol YPF has a presence in Morocco through National Gaz, a bottled LPG distribution company with sales of 34,309 t in 2005. The distribution model is one combining direct sales at sales outlets and sales through exclusive distributors. The sale price of bottled gas is subsidised and regulated by the government, which establishes the profit margin for all the elements of the distribution channel from the producer or importer to the point of sale.