76 (gas station)

History

The Union Oil Company of California (later known as Unocal) introduced the Union 76 brand to its existing Union Oil service stations in 1932. After expanding along the West Coast, the Union 76 brand expanded to the Midwest and Southeast through the acquisition of Pure Oil in 1965.

In 1989, Unocal began to gradually exit the Midwest and Eastern markets by forming a joint venture with PDVSA, called Uno-Ven, in which Unocal contributed its Midwest refining and marketing assets. Unocal sold its interest in Uno-Ven to PDVSA in 1997 and PDVSA rebranded the Midwestern and Eastern Union 76 stations to its Citgo brand.

In 1997, Unocal also sold its remaining refining and marketing operations in the western United States and the rights to the Union 76 brand for use in refining and marketing operations to Tosco. Four years later, Phillips Petroleum purchased Tosco along with the 76 brand in 2001. Phillips merged with Conoco the following year to form ConocoPhillips.

In 2012, ConocoPhillips divested its refining and marketing business, which included the 76 brand, by forming Phillips 66.

In 2016, Saudi Aramco-owned Motiva Enterprises signed a deal with Phillips 66 Company which would allow Motiva to use the 76 brand on some of its stations in its 26 eastern and Gulf Coast states operating territory. By 2017, the 76 brand was reintroduced into New York, Georgia, Texas, Tennessee, and New Jersey.