SC Fuels, a subsidiary of Pilot Travel Centers LLC, is set to acquire Downs Energy’s cardlock, fleet card, delivered fuels and lubricants distribution businesses, according to Matrix Capital Markets Group, who advised the sale.

“Headquartered in Corona, California, Downs Energy is a petroleum marketer that operates six high-performing cardlocks with a large fleet card customer base and a delivered fuels and lubricants distribution segment servicing commercial and municipal customers throughout Southern California,” Matrix wrote.

The company was founded in 1940 when Elvin Downs became a wholesale distributor for Standard Oil Co. in Corona, California. In 1975, Elvin’s son, John, and his wife Catherine, assumed leadership of the company and introduced a “key lock” system for around-the-clock fuel sales at unattended sites, a precursor to today’s cardlock facilities. During the 1980s, their children, Mike and Sherry, joined the company.

Mike Downs became president of the company in 1992, and he and Sherry continued to expand the business by opening three additional cardlock sites in the 1990s and acquired and built two additional cardlocks over the last ten years. Under their leadership, the company also focused on further developing its delivered fuels and lubricants distribution businesses, which deliver fuels along with Phillips 66 and Petro-Canada branded lubricants across Southern California.

The transaction was managed by Cedric Fortemps. Fortemps commented, “Over three generations, the Downs family has built one of the leading cardlock, fleet card and fuels and lubricants distribution businesses in the industry by focusing on continuous investment in their state-of-the-art cardlock facilities and best-in-class customer service. We were honored to have advised them on the sale of the company.”

Matrix did not disclose a timeline or monetary amount for the transaction.