MEQUON, Wis. -- Bulk Petroleum Corp. would sell up to 150 gas stations to pay down debt and the company would survive with longtime owner Darshan Dhaliwal taking a minority stake, according to the company's proposed Chapter 11 reorganization, The Business Journal of Milwaukee recently reported.

The Mequon, Wis.-based petroleum distributor and gas station owner has retained Hilco Real Estate, Northbrook, Ill., to sell some or all of the stations. The bid deadline is Jan. 31, 2010; the auction date is Feb. 17, 2010.

[Editor's Note: This is the final story in a three-part series highlighting Pacific Convenience & Fuels, San Ramon, Calif., the one-year-old convenience store giant that purchased nearly 600 stores from ConocoPhillips in 2008.]

SAN RAMON, Calif. -- When Pacific Convenience & Fuels LLC, San Ramon, Calif., took over ConocoPhillips' nearly 600 convenience stores in January 2009, it assumed not only the major oil's store network, but also the legacy of its conventional retail approach.

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Taking advantage of Silicon Valley real-estate bargains, 7-Eleven Inc. could open at least 20 new stores in Santa Clara, Santa Cruz and Monterey counties in California over the next two years, reported The San Jose Business Journal.

"It could be that many, based on the area's population size and density," Tom Nelson, retail specialist for Colliers International, told the newspaper. Colliers is representing the Dallas-based retailer that operates, franchises or licenses nearly 37,000 stores worldwide, including 7,900 in North America and 450 throughout Northern California.