Galp's Refining Merger with Moeve Falls Through
October 26, 2026
Galp Energia said on Monday talks with Spain's Moeve to combine their refining, chemicals and fuel retail businesses had collapsed, derailing a deal that would have created one of Europe's biggest refiners and sending shares in the Portuguese group down 7.5%.
Galp and Moeve, formerly known as Cepsa and owned by Abu Dhabi's Mubadala and US investment firm Carlyle CG.O, announced a non-binding agreement in January to explore merging some of their assets through two joint ventures.
"While the strategic rationale underpinning the proposed transaction remains compelling, the parties were unable to achieve the necessary commercial alignment to support an enduring and value-accretive partnership," Galp Chairwoman Paula Amorim said on Monday.
The decline in Galp shares made the stock one of the worst performers on the pan-European STOXX 600 .STOXX, and put it on course for its biggest one-day drop in 11 months.
RBC analysts said investors had expected a Moeve-Galp deal early in the fourth quarter, believing it would eliminate a major obstacle to a potential takeover of Galp in future. They said the lack of a deal "may call into question Galp's premium valuation relative to peers".
Moeve CEO Maarten Wetselaar said in a statement the company was "fully focused" on its strategic transformation towards low-carbon businesses after the talks collapsed.
Neither company gave a specific reason for the discussions failing. One source familiar with the talks said the volatility on the energy market sparked by the Iran war made it difficult to put a value on the refineries, adding that there is no intention of resuming talks in the mid term.
Galp Third-Quarter Profit Beats Expectations
The selloff in Galp shares came despite the company reporting a 68% rise in third-quarter adjusted net profit, beating expectations as record refining margins and higher oil prices amid conflict in the Middle East boosted earnings.
The group joined a string of global peers reporting bumper earnings as fuel supply disruptions due to war in Iran pushed diesel, gasoline and other refined-product prices higher relative to crude, boosting refining margins worldwide.
The collapse of the talks leaves Galp's refining, chemicals and fuel retail businesses under its sole ownership, while the group continues to focus on its core growth areas, including oil production in Brazil and renewable energy.
A separate industrial venture would have combined Galp's Sines refinery with Moeve's Huelva and Algeciras refineries, creating a refining platform with crude processing capacity of about 700,000 barrels per day.
The companies had also planned to create a retail business operating around 3,500 service stations, primarily in Spain and Portugal.
(Reuters - Reporting by Sergio Goncalves and Pietro Lombardi; Editing by David Holmes and Jan Harvey)
