North Atlantic Refining

North Atlantic Refining Ltd. was a Canadian petroleum company associated with the Come By Chance refinery in Newfoundland and Labrador. The operating company was established in August 1994 after the Vitol Group acquired the refinery from Newfoundland Processing Ltd. Its business centered on refining crude oil and supplying petroleum products to regional and export markets, with the refinery’s location providing access to Atlantic shipping routes and customers in eastern Canada and the northeastern United States. The company changed ownership several times during its operating life. Harvest Energy Trust acquired North Atlantic Refining in October 2006 for approximately C$1.6 billion. Three years later, in October 2009, Korea National Oil Corporation purchased the company. In 2014, ownership moved again to SilverRange Capital Partners, a New York-based alternative asset manager. These transactions reflected the changing ownership structure of a strategically located but financially and operationally challenged Atlantic Canadian refining asset. The refinery’s later history was marked by prolonged commercial difficulty and idling. In May 2020, Irving Oil announced that it was negotiating to acquire the refinery. Those negotiations ended without a completed transaction in October 2020, when the parties announced that the Come By Chance refinery would close permanently. The closure ended North Atlantic Refining’s role as an operating petroleum-refining brand. In November 2021, U.S. private-equity firm Cresta Fund Management acquired a controlling stake in the idled refinery and announced plans to convert the facility to biofuel production. The asset was renamed Braya Renewable Fuels as part of that transaction. Accordingly, North Atlantic Refining is best understood as a defunct refining-company brand and former operating identity of the Come By Chance facility, rather than as an active standalone petroleum business. Its historical significance lies in the refinery’s ownership transitions, its role in Atlantic Canadian fuel supply, and the eventual shift from conventional petroleum refining toward renewable fuels.

North Atlantic Refining originated in the restructuring and ownership history of the Come By Chance refinery in Newfoundland and Labrador. In August 1994, the Vitol Group acquired the refinery from Newfoundland Processing Ltd. and established North Atlantic Refining Ltd. as its operating company. The business was therefore created around an existing industrial facility rather than launched as a consumer-facing fuel brand. Its principal activity was the processing of crude oil into conventional petroleum products for regional and export markets. The refinery’s Atlantic Canadian location was commercially significant. Come By Chance offered marine access and proximity to fuel-consuming markets in eastern Canada and the northeastern United States. At the same time, the facility operated in a competitive refining environment exposed to crude-oil costs, product prices, transportation expenses, maintenance requirements, and fluctuations in regional demand. North Atlantic Refining’s ownership history reflected the difficulty of operating and financing a standalone refinery in that setting. In October 2006, Harvest Energy Trust purchased North Atlantic Refining in a transaction reported at approximately C$1.6 billion. The company was later acquired by Korea National Oil Corporation in October 2009. In 2014, SilverRange Capital Partners, a New York-based alternative asset manager, became the owner. Across these periods, the company remained associated with the Come By Chance refinery and conventional petroleum refining. The facility subsequently entered a period of idling and commercial uncertainty. On May 28, 2020, Irving Oil announced that it was negotiating to acquire the refinery. The proposed sale did not proceed. On October 5, 2020, the collapse of the negotiations was accompanied by the announcement that the Come By Chance refinery would close permanently. This ended North Atlantic Refining’s operation as a conventional petroleum-refining company. In November 2021, Cresta Fund Management, a U.S. private-equity group, acquired a controlling stake in the idled facility. The new owner announced a strategy to convert the plant from petroleum refining to biofuel production, and the refinery was renamed Braya Renewable Fuels. The transition marked the end of North Atlantic Refining as the facility’s operating identity and represented a change from fossil-fuel processing toward renewable-fuel manufacturing. Publicly available reference material does not identify a separate continuing North Atlantic Refining business after the renaming.

• 2021

  Facility renamed Braya Renewable Fuels

  [1]North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org

  Cresta Fund Management acquired a controlling stake in the idled refinery and announced its conversion to biofuel production.

• 2020

  Refinery closure announced

  [1]North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org

  After Irving Oil’s proposed purchase failed to close, the Come By Chance refinery was announced to be permanently closed.

• 2014

  SilverRange Capital Partners acquisition

  [1]North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org

  SilverRange Capital Partners acquired North Atlantic Refining and became associated with the Come By Chance refinery.

• 2009

  Korea National Oil Corporation acquisition

  [1]North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org

  Korea National Oil Corporation purchased the company from its previous owner.

• 2006

  Harvest Energy Trust acquisition

  [1]North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org

  Harvest Energy Trust acquired North Atlantic Refining for a reported approximately C$1.6 billion.

• 1994

  North Atlantic Refining is established

  [1]North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org

  After Vitol acquired the Come By Chance refinery from Newfoundland Processing Ltd., North Atlantic Refining Ltd. was formed as the operating company.

A regional Atlantic Canadian petroleum-refining operator built around the strategically located Come By Chance refinery, serving conventional-fuel markets before the facility was closed and repositioned for renewable-fuel production.

• Petroleum refining · 1994

  Refined petroleum products

  North Atlantic Refining’s core output came from conventional crude-oil refining at the Come By Chance facility. The refinery supplied petroleum products for fuel markets, although the available reference material does not provide a complete product slate or detailed volume breakdown.

• Transportation and heating fuels

  Gasoline and distillate fuels

  The refinery historically served markets requiring conventional transportation and distillate fuels, including gasoline, diesel, and heating-related products. Specific branded grades, formulations, and retail distribution arrangements are not identified in the supplied references.

• 2021

  Convert the refinery to biofuel productionStrategy

  Background

  Cresta Fund Management acquired a controlling stake in the idled refinery after the conventional refining operation had been closed.

  Action taken

  Cresta announced plans to repurpose the facility for biofuel production and renamed it Braya Renewable Fuels.

  Aftermath

  The North Atlantic Refining identity was replaced by a renewable-fuels operating identity, ending the brand’s historical role in petroleum refining.

  Source

• 2020

  Pursue and then abandon a sale to Irving OilM&A

  Background

  Irving Oil entered negotiations to purchase the refinery while the facility faced prolonged operating and commercial difficulties.

  Action taken

  Irving Oil announced the negotiations in May, but the transaction was not completed; the refinery’s permanent closure was announced in October.

  Aftermath

  North Atlantic Refining ceased operating as a conventional petroleum-refining business, and the Come By Chance facility remained idled.

  Source

• 1994

  Create an operating company following the Vitol acquisitionM&A

  Background

  Vitol acquired the Come By Chance refinery from Newfoundland Processing Ltd. and required an operating-company structure for the asset.

  Action taken

  North Atlantic Refining Ltd. was established to operate the refinery.

  Aftermath

  The company became the principal operating identity associated with the Come By Chance refinery.

  Source

• 2021

  Cresta Fund Management acquires a controlling stake and proposes biofuel conversion[1]North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org

  M&A · Product generation

  Cresta Fund Management purchased a controlling interest in the idled refinery and announced plans to convert the facility to biofuel production. The refinery was renamed Braya Renewable Fuels.

• 2020

  Irving Oil negotiations to purchase the refinery collapse[1]North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org

  M&A · Bankruptcy

  Irving Oil announced negotiations to purchase the refinery in May, but the proposed transaction did not close. In October, the refinery’s permanent closure was announced.

• 2014

  SilverRange Capital Partners acquires North Atlantic Refining[1]North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  Ownership of the refinery company moved to SilverRange Capital Partners, a New York-based alternative asset manager.

• 2009

  Korea National Oil Corporation acquires North Atlantic Refining[1]North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  Korea National Oil Corporation purchased the company, becoming its new owner after the Harvest Energy period.

• 2006

  Harvest Energy Trust purchases North Atlantic Refining[1]North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  Harvest Energy Trust acquired North Atlantic Refining in a transaction reported at approximately C$1.6 billion.

• 1994

  Vitol acquires the Come By Chance refinery and establishes North Atlantic Refining[1]North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org

  M&A · Other

  The Vitol Group purchased the Come By Chance refinery from Newfoundland Processing Ltd.; North Atlantic Refining Ltd. was formed as the operating company.

1. 1North Atlantic Refiningen.wikipedia.org