HOUSTON -- FuelQuest Inc., a leading on-demand software and services company for the global downstream energy industry, has completed the sale of its Zytax energy-related tax automation business to Avalara, a cloud-based sales tax and compliance automation technology provider.
FuelQuest's former president and CEO, Matt Tormollen, will immediately join Avalara as executive vice president and general manager.
FuelQuest also announced the promotion of Phil Fraher from COO to CEO, succeeding Tormollen. Scott Cilento, FuelQuest's senior vice president of value assurance, has been promoted to COO, succeeding Fraher.
The divestiture of Zytax will allow FuelQuest to focus exclusively on continued expansion of its fuel management automation business. With more than 22 billion annualized gallons of fuel under management with its software, FuelQuest offers solutions that mitigate the impact of high fuel price volatility and drive down fuel operations costs for a competitive advantage in the market.
FuelQuest will retain a long-term license agreement with Avalara to continue using the tax determination capabilities in its flagship Fuel Management System (FMS) solution.
"Fuel price volatility and supply-chain disruptions present daily challenges to fuel-centric businesses. Rising competition and operations costs expose inefficiencies within the fuel supply chain. Consequently, the need for automated fuel management solutions has never been greater," said Fraher. "This divesture of our tax business along with a long-term license agreement for tax calculator capabilities within our FMS product enable FuelQuest to invest fully in the core business upon which it was originally founded. We are committed to helping businesses of all sizes achieve greater financial goals through our proven solutions and established best practices."
Fraher previously held the position of COO and CFO at FuelQuest. Since joining the company in 2010, he has spearheaded major strategy and operational changes across the company including build out of its high-growth Fuel Center business. He has delivered performance and financial gains through process improvement and helped the company achieve record year-over-year growth for the company's fuel management business specifically.
Prior to FuelQuest, Fraher held numerous executive positions including serving as CEO at Visual Numerics, a data analysis and visualization solutions company.
"The board is excited to have Phil at the helm of FuelQuest. During his tenure, he has demonstrated strong operational and financial leadership as well as the necessary skills and attributes needed to deliver continued growth into the future," said Kevin M. Kelley on behalf of FuelQuest's board of directors. "His broad scope of experience in technology, finance, operations, and international expansion is exactly what we need as we heighten our focus on optimizing fuel management operations. We are confident that with Phil as chief executive officer, FuelQuest will continue on a path of success."
Houston-based FuelQuest provides on-demand fuel management software and services for suppliers, distributors, buyers and traders of petroleum products and other energy commodities. FuelQuest enables companies to take advantage of wholesale fuel price volatility and drive costs out of their fuel operations. FuelQuest's solutions deliver operational and financial value for companies responsible for more than 22 billion gallons of gasoline and diesel annually.
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