Sol History

The Sol Group was formed through the acquisition of Shell’s business in the Eastern Caribbean, Guyana, Suriname and Belize.

Sol acquired Shell’s business in Puerto Rico in 2006.

Sol continued on a path of continuous growth through its further purchase of Exxon’s assets in Suriname and Guyana in 2007. Just three months later, Sol also purchased Exxon’s assets in the Republic of Haiti, adding yet another diverse market to its existing portfolio.

In September 2009, Sol made a confident but very characteristic move and acquired Shell’s Aviation business in the Eastern Caribbean. This move cemented Sol’s presence as an energy leader in the Caribbean and as a vital player in the region’s economy. 2009 led to another cornerstone investment in Sol’s portfolio. In November of that year, Sol signed a sales agreement to acquire Shell’s retail, commercial and aviation businesses in the Dominican Republic.

In summer of 2009, Sol launched its first Sol branded site in Haiti. The Sol brand since its first introduction has been installed across several retail, aviation and commercial sites across the Caribbean.

On May 13, 2011, Sol acquired Shell’s business in Dominican Republic, adding the 17th pillar to Sol’s portfolio across the region.

On July 18th The Sol Group officially welcomed SOL GUYANE FRANÇAISE (SGF) to its Group of Companies. French Guiana is the 18th pillar in Sol’s portfolio and this move extends the company’s presence within the North Eastern region of South America, alongside neighbors Suriname and Guyana.

Le groupe Sol a continué à s’étendre avec une annonce officielle en juin 2013 que Sol a été nommé macro distributeur des lubrifiants de classe mondiale de Shell en Jamaïque. Opérant sous le nom de SOL PETROLEUM JAMAICA LIMITED cette aventure améliore encore la position de Sol comme le MD de lubrifiants des Caraïbes et positionne Sol parmi les premiers MD dans le monde.

On January 1st, 2014 Sol purchased ExxonMobil’s assets in the Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Dominican Republic and Grand Cayman. This pivotal move extended Sol’s reach even further across the region and will see the continuous use of the product portfolio associated with the Esso retail offering. In May of 2014, Sol recorded another significant development in the company’s expansion, closing off its Share Purchase Agreement with ExxonMobil and affiliates, by completing the purchase of the businesses in Guadeloupe and Martinique. The transaction also included acquiring a 14.5% share of SARA (Société Anonyme de la Raffinerie des Antilles/ Refinery Company of the Antilles).

Sol celebrates 10 years of operations in the Caribbean and announces the expansion of the Sol Retail Brand in the Eastern Caribbean. Following a conversion exercise from Shell to Sol, service stations in Barbados, Grenada, St. Lucia and St. Vincent adopted the Sol Retail Brand. Select service stations in Barbados, however, will be converted to Esso as part of the rebranding effort. Sol reaffirms its commitment to Shell as a licensee of the Shell brand in Belize, Guyana, Suriname and Puerto Rico and remains the largest macro distributor of the Shell Lubricants portfolio in the region. In addition to reaching a landmark anniversary, Sol increased its share in the SARA refinery to 29% signifying a 100% increase from the previous 14.5%. This increase comes after the exit of Total from SARA on May 13, 2015 and Sol capitalising on the opportunity to strengthen its position at the refinery. This increased shareholder position at SARA follows Sol’s initial purchase of ExxonMobil’s Caribbean businesses in 2014 across the Western Caribbean, Martinique and Guadeloupe.