* Private firms vie for bigger stake in African fuels
* Chairman says plans to enter three new countries
* May consider further expansion in east Africa
By Emma Farge
LAUSANNE, April 17 (Reuters) - Vivo Energy, a joint venturebetween oil trader Vitol, Royal Dutch Shell and HeliosInvestment Partners, will invest $200 million in Africa's fuelsector and plans within months to enter three new countries, itschairman said.
Vivo, formed in 2011 when Vitol entered theAfrican fuel storage and distribution business and took a 40percent stake, is still dwarfed on the continent by France'sTotal but the new investment could narrow the gap.
"We've got big capital investment plans. We plan to invest$200 million over the next few years. We're opening 50 newstations a year," Paul Greenslade said at the FT GlobalCommodities Summit in Switzerland.
Vivo has around 1,300 service stations in Africa, whichoperate under the Shell brand, compared with Total's3,500. Helios owns 40 percent of Vivo and Shell owns theremainder.
Puma Energy, a subsidiary of top oil trader Vitol's rivalTrafigura, has about 350 service stations in Africa.
Energy traders have historically shipped Africa's oil ontoglobal markets but now also view the continent as a destinationfor fuels and are investing in storage and retail networks tobenefit from high economic growth rates.
Some of the most alluring assets are in Africa's fuelmarket, which is set to grow by 40 percent by 2020 to 4.3million barrels per day, according to Ecobank Research.
Addax & Oryx Group is also a large operator in the Africandownstream sector via its subsidiary Oryx Energies and recentlysaid it would invest $400 million over five years.
Greenslade told Reuters that Vivo, already present in 15countries, planned to expand into West Africa's Ghana and Togoand the Indian Ocean island Reunion in the next few months.
He added that Vivo, which already has a presence in northand west Africa, including Morocco, Tunisia, Ivory Coast andGuinea, would consider further acquisitions in the east, whereit is present in Kenya, Uganda, Madagascar and Mauritius.
Kenyan fuel marketer KenolKobil said in March thattalks to allow Switzerland-based Trafigura subsidiary PumaEnergy to take it over had been terminated, confirming recentmarket speculations.
Asked if Vivo would consider buying KenolKobil, Greensladesaid: "We might consider it of course. At the moment, it'simportant to consolidate what we have."
Vitol rival Trafigura also has a strong presence in theAfrican downstream through Puma which it may list in 2014.
Asked if Vivo Energy would consider a flotation, Greensladesaid: "We are in the process of building the business as opposedto worrying about what we do with it."
Vivo does not publish its profits publicly.
