New alliance dedicated to recovering oil from difficult reservoirs. Chevron Corp. has formed a research alliance with The University of Texas at Austin to develop new technologies to increase the amount of oil recovered from mature and challenging reservoirs. Under the alliance, Chevron Energy Technology Co., a Chevron subsidiary, will provide up to $5 million [...]
“Go Further Grand Awards” rewards operators for hard work and sticking to guidelines. Shell Oil Products US and fuel marketer Motiva Enterprises LLC have recently recognized their highest-performing wholesalers in the U.S. for consistently providing exceptional experiences at their Shell-branded stations. The prestigious “Go Further Grand Awards” were presented in acknowledgment of efforts to deliver [...]
Recent Vendor Expo showcases new equipment for car wash operators. D&S Car Wash Equipment Co. recently held its third annual National Sales Meeting and Vendor Expo on June 20th at the High Ridge plant near St. Louis, Mo. Distributors from all across the U.S. attended the event, which covered sales and service topics on D&S [...]
New sweepstakes targets green customers. Kum and Go is helping customers do just that by giving them a car to “go” home with. The Des Moines, Iowa-based chain has just launched its “Fuel Good” sweepstakes, offering green-conscious customers a chance to win cars and thousands of dollars in E85 fuel. Customers simply go onto the [...]
U.K. newspapers share leaked information regarding mega-merge. BP and Royal Dutch Shell may be on their way to a merger. According to two U.K. newspapers the London Times and the Daily Mail, the two are in talks and well on their way to creating what would be the world’s largest company. Rumors have been floating [...]
Small brewer unveils new beverage named after popular comedian. Rednecks rejoice! Larry the Cable Guy, popular comedian and actor, will now be immortalized in beer form with the release of a beer dedicated to his brand of redneck humor. The new beer, called–you guessed it–”Git-R-Done” is the brainchild of independent brewers Schilling Bridge Winery and [...]
Consumer group attacks chain over consumer warning attempts. Tesoro is putting warning decals on its gas station pumps, including dozens of Shell stations, warning that consumers may not get all the energy they paid for in a gallon of gasoline, according to industry reports today. However, the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights (FTCR) is [...]
Citigroup tobacco analyst Bonnie Herzog revealed a new survey that suggests Marlboro Snus, Phillip-Morris’s new entry into the smokeless tobacco market, may already be a success. The survey questioned both retailers and wholesales, who revealed that they feel the new product will be a hit among both smokers and moist smokeless tobacco (MST) users alike. [...]
New York convenience store operators are taking to the airwaves to voice their frustration with Governor Eliot Spitzer’s inaction on the tax fairness issue. A 60-second TV commercial will begin airing in Syracuse, Albany, Buffalo and possibly other markets on July 5, 2007, demanding that Governor Spitzer begin collecting taxes on the vast amounts of [...]
Tax hike pushes smokers to Kentucky for cheaper products. Hoosier smokers will have to pay more for their cigarettes. A new Indiana law went into effect Sunday that boosts the price. It’s always been cheaper in Kentucky. Indiana’s cigarette tax was 55 cents a pack. Now that’s it’s jumped to 99 cents, many more smokers [...]
Pa. store evacuated, but no injuries reported. A leaky refrigerator shut down a gas station and convenience store for several hours Monday morning. Meadville, Pa. firefighters were sent to the Country Fair store to investigate a suspected Freon leak. Firefighters confirmed the leak and evacuated the store, Meadville Fire Chief Tunie Hedrick said. The leak [...]
Convenience store distributor has depots in 12 Midwest cities. A large Midwest Culligan water treatment and bottled water dealership is becoming even larger by acquiring Prestige Coffee/Coffee Time, which operates coffee services in Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Nebraska. With the purchase, Hall’s Culligan Water, which owns and operates 12 Culligan dealerships in five Midwest states, [...]
A dozen stores rebranded as part of the convenience chain’s month-long celebration leading up to The Simpsons Movie debut. Over the weekend, 7-Eleven Inc. turned a dozen stores into Kwik-E-Marts, the fictional convenience stores of “The Simpsons” fame, in the latest example of marketers making life imitate art. Those stores, in Manhattan, Bladensburg, Md., Orlando, [...]
Former 7-Eleven CEO replaces John Antioco as chairman and CEO of the entertainment company. Jim Keyes, who guided 7-Eleven through some of its most profitable era, today was named chairman and CEO of Blockbuster Inc. Ironically; he replaces John Antioco, another convenience story industry veteran, who served more than a decade with Tosco Corp. Under [...]
Alon USA Energy Inc., today finalized the purchase of the crude and unfinished products pipeline system from Kinder Morgan, Inc. known as the “Black Oil System” for a purchase price of $4.5 million. The “Black Oil” system includes approximately six miles of active and thirteen miles of inactive pipelines in the Long Beach, Calif. area. [...]