Recent heating oil company acquisitions: Lavallee Oil & Sheller Oil

Written on: December 17, 2021 by ICM

Dead River Company, LLC, has acquired the full-service oil heat delivery business of Lavallee Oil, Inc., a New Hampshire-based corporation, for an undisclosed sum. The transaction closed on Dec. 2.

Lavallee Oil, Inc., founded in 1945, markets and sells petroleum distillates and burner services to its residential and light commercial customers in Merrimack, Belknap, and Grafton counties in New Hampshire. Its 75-year history began with founder Rene Lavallee who decided to provide home comfort to customers in and around Suncook, NH. By 1979, his son Ed and daughter-in-law Karen had become partial owners in the business. The company grew through acquisition and diversification and by 2011 Ed and Karen Lavallee bought out the remaining shares of the company. Today Lavallee Oil is recognized as a full-service oil heat marketer and maintains the value of hard work and reliability on which the business was founded.

In other news, D. E. Duffey & Sons, Inc., a Pennsylvania corporation with offices in Plymouth Meeting, PA, has acquired the full-service heating oil delivery business of Sheller Oil Co., West Chester, PA. Terms of the deal were not revealed. The transaction on the sale of Sheller’s heating oil business closed on Dec. 9. (The Sheller family will continue to own its Sheller Propane business, operating from its current West Chester location.)

With beginnings in founders Charles “Wally” Sheller and Betty Sheller’s home basement in 1963, Sheller Oil provides heating oil and service to its customers in and around West Chester, PA. By the early 1980s their son, Bruce took over ownership and operations including the addition of storage tanks and implementation of a series of acquisitions and adding a propane division that spurred growth. Today, Sheller Oil is known as a premier home comfort provider with a reputation for delivering exceptional service to its customers.

Cetane Associates served as the sole arranger and financial advisor to Lavallee Oil, Inc. and Sheller Oil Co.