Empire Petroleum Partners, LLC announced that it successfully acquired the Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama wholesale distribution rights of Superior Transport, Inc., a Georgia based distributor that supplies branded and unbranded fuel to gas stations throughout northwest Georgia, northeastern Alabama, and the Chattanooga, Tennessee area.  The addition of the STi's customers' provides Empire with coverage of the entire state of Georgia adding to an existing footprint in the Atlanta market and south/central Georgia.  In addition, Empire adds to its existing portfolio in Alabama and Tennessee and further increases Empire's existing supplier partnerships with Shell and BP.

Headquartered in Rome, Georgia, STi was initially the wholesale and transportation division of D&D Oil Company, Inc., d/b/a Cowboys Food Mart. In 2002, STi was incorporated into a new entity and operated as a sister company to D&D Oil until the sale of the Cowboys Food Mart chain to The Pantry, Inc. in 2004. STi continued to haul fuels for The Pantry after the Cowboys sale and, over the next four years, built a large common carrier business with 78 transports hauling fuels in 4 states. In 2008, STi sold its common carrier business to the Kenan Advantage Group, Inc. in order to focus exclusively on building its retail and wholesale motor fuels operations. The Company was primarily an unbranded marketer and developed their own Hi-Tech fuel brand to offer customers a high quality fuel image coupled with the lower costs of unbranded fuel.

Over the last several years, the Company has grown significantly under the leadership of its President and co-owner Don Newton, co-owner Jarrett Shadday, and CFO Kevin Bush. At the time of the sale to Empire, the Company retailed fuels through 47 consignment accounts and supplied wholesale fuels to 77 supply customers. The majority of the fuels marketed by the Company were through their proprietary Hi-Tech and Smile brands, and the Company also supplied unbranded fuels to customers using their own flags. STi supplied 6 Shell sites and 11 BP sites and was a jobber for both companies, and the Company operated a trucking division that hauled fuel to its consignment and wholesale sites in Georgia and Tennessee. The Company also has a commercial fuels business operating as Enterprise Oil Company and will continue to operate and grow this business going forward.

"Empire is very pleased to add STi's high volume dealer base to its existing distributor network with this acquisition. The quality of dealers associated with STi enhances our existing Georgia network with a portfolio now stretching across the entire state. Sti Fuels has been a fixture in all facets of the fuel business for decades to include, retail, wholesale, development, and transportation,  and being able to acquire these customers' is a welcome addition to Empire's network," said Empire's Vice President of Market Development, Michael O'Brien.

Mr. Newton commented, "This is a continually evolving industry and Empire Petroleum has the resources and personnel to help our customers continue to grow and develop. It is never easy to let go of something that you have built, but we feel Empire was the best choice to turn the company over to. Empire is hiring STi's sales and maintenance force which will help ensure a smooth and seamless transition."

Richmond, Virginia based Matrix Capital Markets Group, Inc. provided merger and acquisition advisory services to STi.