Aster Chemicals and Energy Pte. Ltd. is reportedly in exclusive negotiations to acquire ExxonMobil’s network of Esso-branded service stations in Singapore, in a deal valued around USD 1 billion. The transaction, still under negotiation, is expected to cover approximately 59 stations across the city-state, according to multiple media reports.
The prospective acquisition follows a string of strategic moves by Aster’s parent company, CAPGC Pte. Ltd., a joint venture between Chandra Asri Capital and Glencore Asian Holdings, to build an integrated energy and petrochemicals platform in Singapore. In April 2025, CAPGC completed the acquisition of Shell’s Singapore Energy and Chemicals Park—spanning Pulau Bukom and Jurong Island—through the purchase of Aster Chemicals and Energy Pte. Ltd., formerly a wholly owned Shell subsidiary. The deal included a 237,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) refinery, a 1.1 million tonne-per-year (tpy) ethylene cracker, and associated downstream chemical production assets.
Further expanding its chemicals footprint, Aster announced in May 2025 that it had reached an agreement—via affiliate Chandra Asri Capital—to acquire Chevron Phillips Singapore Chemicals (CPSC), which owns and operates a 400,000 tpy high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plant on Jurong Island. Together, these acquisitions signal Aster’s ambition to become a major player in Singapore’s refining, petrochemicals, and fuel retail sectors.
Speculation around the sale of the Esso service stations in Singapore began circulating in April 2025. On July 10, Bloomberg reported that Aster had emerged as the frontrunner, outbidding several international firms and entering the final stage of deal talks. The company is believed to be working with a financial adviser to support the bid, though no definitive agreement has been reached.
ExxonMobil has operated in Singapore for more than 130 years and is a major player in the local energy market. It markets fuels, lubricants and petrochemical products under the Esso and Mobil brands, with significant infrastructure investments including a refinery, lubricant blending plant, and petrochemical complex on Jurong Island. ExxonMobil Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd. holds more than SGD 25 billion (USD 18.5 billion) in fixed assets in the country.
Should the transaction proceed, it would mark Aster’s first foray into Singapore’s downstream fuel retail sector and represent a major shift in ExxonMobil’s local strategy, which has already seen the divestment of several non-core assets in Asia.
In 2023, ExxonMobil sold its Esso Thailand business—including the Sriracha refinery, fuel terminals, and a nationwide network of petrol stations—to Bangchak Corporation for approximately USD 603 million.
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