Asda is reportedly in talks to buy Co-op’s petrol forecourt business.

According to a report by Sky News, the supermarket retailer is the frontrunner for the £450 million buyout.

Walmart sold its majority stake in Asda in 2020, when it was taken over by the Issa Brothers and UK private equity firm TDR Capital.

Last week the news site revealed that Co-op was exploring the sale of around 130 petrol forecourts.

It said that the money from the sale would be used to strengthen its balance sheet, reduce its debt, and enable the company to fund digital projects in other areas of the business.

Sources at Sky said that a deal could be agreed with Asda on as early as this week. But they added that there are other companies interested in buying the retailer’s petrol forecourt business.

The move comes after Co-op announced that Shirine Khoury-Haq had been appointed group chief executive.

Khoury-Haq will be the first woman and first person of an ethnic minority background to take on the role, which she has been doing on an interim basis for the past three months.

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