Irish energy group Topaz has confirmed its sale to Canadian firm Couche-Tard has been completed.

The transaction was announced on December 2nd and has been approved by the EU Commission.

All final closing requirements have now been completed, the company says.

Niall Anderton, formerly the chief financial officer of Topaz, has been appointed managing director.

Former managing director Emmet O'Neill stepped down on the completion of the transaction - as was previously announced.

Mr Anderton has previously held senior executive positions in Primark, O2 and Brown Thomas.

Speaking today, Jørn Madsen - Couche-Tard's EVP for Central and Eastern Europe and responsible for their business in Ireland - said: "We are very pleased to have closed the transaction in such a timely manner and are ready to shift our focus to fully integrating Topaz into the Couche-Tard family".

"We are particularly pleased that Niall will take over as the leader of our business in Ireland. We have been working closely with Niall over the last few months and we are certain that he is the right person to lead Topaz through the next phase of its development", he added.

Topaz has 444 stations across Ireland - including its recently acquired Esso station network.

Of these stations, 158 are owned by Topaz and 286 by dealers.

The agreement also encompasses a commercial fuels operation, with over 30 depots and two owned terminals.

Couche-Tard has approximately 15,000 sites across its network in North America (US and Canada), Europe (Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Poland, the Baltics and Russia), Asia and the Middle East.

Some 100,000 people are employed in its network across the world.