Filling station and food service giant EG Group has seen its profit nearly wiped out ahead of a planned £13bn float in New York.
The Blackburn-based empire, established by brothers Mohsin and Zuber Issa, is now partly owned by the private equity behemoth TDR Capital.
Recently filed accounts with Companies House show that EG Group's pre-tax profit plummeted from $1.4bn to $10m in 2024, as reported by .
According to EG Group, this significant drop in pre-tax profit was "largely driven by the material exceptional gain that the group reported following the divestment of the majority of the º£½ÇÊÓƵ business in October 2023 and the profit from the USA sale and leaseback transaction which completed in May 2023".
Excluding these exceptional items, the group recorded a pre-tax loss of $195m, yet it realised a profit of $205m from divestments.
In 2023, the group faced a pre-tax loss of $125m before exceptional items, but these led to a profit of $1.5bn.
The transaction in autumn 2023 involved the sale of its remaining º£½ÇÊÓƵ forecourt business and certain foodservice locations to co-founder Zuber Issa for £228m.
Post-deal, Zuber Issa resigned as co-chief executive to become a non-executive director.
Mohsin Issa initially took on the role of sole CEO of EG Group but was recently succeeded by Russ Colaco.
Simultaneously, Zuber Issa sold his Asda shares to TDR Capital, granting the private equity firm majority ownership. Mohsin remains a substantial shareholder in Asda.
The group struck a deal in the USA, selling and leasing back a portfolio of its east coast sites to Realty Income Corporation for a gross consideration of approximately $1.5bn.
However, EG Group's revenue saw a decline from $28.3bn to $24.1m over the year.
The company attributed this decrease in sales to falling fuel prices and the impact of divestments made over the past two years.
In February, EG Group issued a statement to the press, reporting a nine per cent increase in its EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) for 2024.
No further financial figures were disclosed at that time.
These full accounts follow reports from late 2024 that EG Group was considering floating its remaining business in New York, a move which could value it at $13bn.
In a statement released in February regarding the full-year results, Mohsin Issa said: "2024 was another successful year for EG Group. We grew full-year EBITDA by nine per cent on an underlying basis, with notable contributions from our USA and European businesses.
"This excellent performance is testament to the efforts and commitment of our 38,000 colleagues who continue to deliver great customer service across our grocery and merchandise, foodservice and fuel propositions each day, as well as our financial and operational delivery.
"We made significant progress with further reducing the quantum and price of our debt – bolstered by non-core divestments and the repricing of our EUR and USD term loans – and we are committed to further deleveraging in a disciplined manner.
"The actions we took last year have positioned us for further growth and together with our extensive portfolio of assets in nine countries globally, will provide a platform for us to maximise future growth opportunities to further strengthen our position as a leading independent convenience and fuel retailer.
"Looking ahead, we are well placed to progress as a business in 2025, and I look forward to working with our global team to deliver continued growth."
Last month, EG Group revealed that its group underlying EBITDA fell by four per cent to $156m during the first quarter of 2025.
The group said this was due to "adverse weather in the USA impacting fuel and grocery demand and reduced availability of fuel in Germany following temporary refinery disruptions."
