BP Tries To Sell Some Real Estate Amid Oil-Spill Woes

15th Jun 2010 22:05

By A.D. Pruitt Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--BP PLC (BP, BP.LN) is trying to sell some commercial real estate. The company has put 114 gasoline stations and convenience-store properties on the block in 22 states. The majority of the properties are being marketed as redevelopment sites while some are being offered as part of potential franchise deals, according to the website of Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. (JLL), BP's broker. The decision to sell the properties predates the disastrous oil-platform explosion in April, according to Guy Ponticiello, a Jones Lang managing director. He said BP announced plans to exit from direct service-station ownership a few years ago. Jones Lang declined to comment on any reputational risk BP has in marketing the properties that began roughly two weeks ago. But Eric Anton, an executive managing director at Eastern Consolidated, said the negative publicity of the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, originating from a BP well, "may create more buzz" for the properties partly because buyers may assume they may have an advantage on pricing terms. "From a buyer's point of view, psychologically, they know BP has to raise cash. So, [buyers] want to get in there while the getting is good," Anton said. -By A.D. Pruitt, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2197; [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 15, 2010 17:05 ET (21:05 GMT)