Stock story: Ampol

Stock story: Ampol

Ampol is Australia's largest fuel refiner and distributor, playing a critical role in supplying fuel to Australian consumers and industries. While Ampol is widely recognised for its national convenience retail network, we believe the market underappreciates the strategic value of their Lytton refinery asset. Lytton is one of only two remaining refineries in Australia. While the recent Iran conflict has drawn attention to the importance of fuel security in Australia, we see the real catalyst for value realisation sitting not in the headlines themselves, but in the evolving policy discussions that underpin Lytton's long-term earnings.

Australia's refining capacity has deteriorated dramatically over the past 15 years. In 2011, the country operated seven refineries, supplying around 75% of domestic fuel demand. Today, only two refineries remain, these being Ampol's Lytton Refinery in Brisbane and Viva Energy's Geelong Refinery. Combined, these refineries meet just 20% of Australia's fuel needs. The balance of fuel is imported as refined product, predominantly from South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, China and Japan. As Australia has shifted from refining self-sufficiency to import dependence, the strategic value of these last two refineries has grown considerably, given their role in national fuel security.

 


Source: Australian Petroleum Statistics

 


Source: Australian Petroleum Statistics

 

The outbreak of the war against Iran and subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz triggered a major global supply disruption. Notably, Ampol does not use Middle Eastern crude oil, yet the cascading effects on Asian refining production and product flows still materially affected supply chains into Australia. With Australia's fuel stockholdings well below the IEA's 90-day requirement, concerns around supply security were heightened.


Source: Australian Petroleum Statistics

 

Ampol is Australia's largest fuel refiner and distributor, playing a critical role in supplying fuel to Australian consumers and industries. While Ampol is widely recognised for its national convenience retail network, we believe the market underappreciates the strategic value of their Lytton refinery asset. Lytton is one of only two remaining refineries in Australia. While the recent Iran conflict has drawn attention to the importance of fuel security in Australia, we see the real catalyst for value realisation sitting not in the headlines themselves, but in the evolving policy discussions that underpin Lytton's long-term earnings.

Australia's refining capacity has deteriorated dramatically over the past 15 years. In 2011, the country operated seven refineries, supplying around 75% of domestic fuel demand. Today, only two refineries remain, these being Ampol's Lytton Refinery in Brisbane and Viva Energy's Geelong Refinery. Combined, these refineries meet just 20% of Australia's fuel needs. The balance of fuel is imported as refined product, predominantly from South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, China and Japan. As Australia has shifted from refining self-sufficiency to import dependence, the strategic value of these last two refineries has grown considerably, given their role in national fuel security.

On a regulated basis, we estimate Lytton's value at $1.5–2.0 billion, compared to our estimate of the market's current implied valuation of less than $1.0 billion. This gap implies $3–$5 per share of incremental value to Ampol's current share price from the Lytton re-rate alone, before considering further upside from the EG Group acquisition and the rollout of U-GO conversions across the convenience retail network.


Source: Ampol Annual Reports

 

David Meehan
Equities Analyst

 

 

Important Information: This material has been delivered to you by Magellan Asset Management Limited ABN 31 120 593 946 AFS Licence No. 304 301 trading as Magellan Investment Partners (‘Magellan Investment Partners’) and has been prepared for general information purposes only and must not be construed as investment advice or as an investment recommendation.  This material does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or particular needs. This material does not constitute an offer or inducement to engage in an investment activity nor does it form part of any offer documentation, offer or invitation to purchase, sell or subscribe for interests in any type of investment product or service. You should obtain and consider the relevant Product Disclosure Statement (‘PDS’) and Target Market Determination (‘TMD’) and consider obtaining professional investment advice tailored to your specific circumstances before making a decision about whether to acquire, or continue to hold, the relevant financial product. A copy of the relevant PDS and TMD relating to a Magellan Investment Partners financial product may be obtained by calling +61 2 9235 4888 or by visiting www.magellaninvestmentpartners.com

Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results and no person guarantees the future performance of any financial product or service, the amount or timing of any return from it, that asset allocations will be met, that it will be able to implement its investment strategy or that its investment objectives will be achieved. This material may contain ‘forward-looking statements’. Actual events or results or the actual performance of a Magellan Investment Partners financial product or service may differ materially from those reflected or contemplated in such forward-looking statements.

This material may include data, research and other information from third party sources. No guarantee is made that such information is accurate, complete or timely and no warranty is given regarding results obtained from its use. This information is subject to change at any time and no person has any responsibility to update any of the information provided in this material.  Statements contained in this material that are not historical facts are based on current expectations, estimates, projections, opinions and beliefs of Magellan Investment Partners or the third party responsible for making those statements (as relevant). Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, and undue reliance should not be placed thereon. No representation or warranty is made with respect to the accuracy or completeness of any of the information contained in this material. Magellan Investment Partners will not be responsible or liable for any losses arising from your use or reliance upon any part of the information contained in this material.

Any third-party trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners and Magellan Investment Partners claims no ownership in, nor any affiliation with, such trademarks.   Any third-party trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners, are used for information purposes and only to identify the company names or brands of their respective owners, and no affiliation, sponsorship or endorsement should be inferred from such use. This material and the information contained within it may not be reproduced, or disclosed, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of Magellan Investment Partners. (080825-#W17)