http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=568&e=8&u=/nm/20050425/bs_nm/energy_premcor_valero_dcNEW YORK (Reuters) - Valero Energy Corp. said on Monday it has agreed to buy rival Premcor Inc. for $6.9 billion in cash and stock, vaulting it ahead of Exxon Mobil as the largest refiner of crude oil in North America.
The deal, which is expected to spark further consolidation in the sector, will expand Valero's geographic reach in the United States and boost its processing of heavy, sour crude oil, which costs less to buy than lighter oil and generates higher margins.
"With industry margins at an all-time high, this is the best and most strategic acquisition, which will be a cash-making machine for the foreseeable future," said Fadel Gheit, a senior analyst at Oppenheimer & Co.
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Oh gee whiz, THAT should really help gasoline prices. I just love the 'free market' economy, where sellers compete to get business by offering better products at lower prices, or failing that, buy them off and raise prices.
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