Aomori Group - Hess to Shed Gas Stations.

Aomori Group: A shift in strategy will see Hess sell off its gas stations and focus on its oil production business.

(prHWY.com) March 25, 2013 - Fayetteville,, NC -- Aomori Group in a recent meeting, are understood to have conveyed to investors that a shift in strategy will see Hess sell off its gas stations and focus on its oil production business.

Hess pronounced that they plan to divest completely their entire downstream business, which includes more than 1,350 gas stations on the east coast, as well as their energy marketing and trading units. A spokesperson for Hess also stated that they would be selling off their stakes in assets in Thailand and Indonesia, as well as their holding in the Bakken shale in North Dakota.

A prospective buyer for the gas stations may decide to keep the strong branding and operate them under the Hess name, while it will also prove attractive to retail competitors looking to expand aggressively, to take over the strategic locations held by Hess across 16 eastern states.

Aomori Group allegedly commented that Hess's gas station business is in a healthy state and is unlikely to struggle to find suitors for most of its sites. The Hess brand is very strong and well established, so it seems unlikely that an across the board name change would occur.

This announcement is the latest in a series of changes designed to strip company assets. In the beginning of the year, Hess announced its plan to close its last remaining refinery and to sell off 19 oil storage terminals. Hess is re-positioning itself as a primarily oil exploration and production company.

Aomori Group are also to believe to have noted that a Hess spokesperson publicly stated that they intend to launch a share buyback program that will see them purchase up to $4 billion in stock, while they also intend to double their annual dividend.

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