Total to build $2.5-M service station along SLEX

Total Philippines Corp. (TPC) plans to start the construction of its $2.5-million gasoline station and service facility along the South Expressway by next month.

At the launch of Total’s newest gasoline product the high-octane "Infinity," Total president and managing director Jeff Attwood said they expect the South Expressway station to operate commercially by June 2004.

"It’s a $2.5-million gasoline station turned into a mini-mall. We are anticipating 10 food chains to be set up in the area. It’s going to be located at the north bound road of the South Expressway," Attwood said.

Aside from the top three oil firms, Total will be the only gas company to put up a gasoline station in the super highway. Before the oil deregulation law was passed in 1998, only Petron Corp., Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. and Caltex Philippines Inc. were allowed to put up a service station in the said areas by the virtue of a memorandum of agreement signed by these three oil firms with the Philippine National Construction Corp (PNCC).

The said agreement, however, has been invalidated with the enactment of the Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act in 1998.

Six other oil firms have signified interest to construct new gasoline stations and service facilities along the North and South Expressways following the approval of their applications by the PNCC last October. The firms are Central Country Estate, Inc.; G-Star Venture and Development Corp.; and Siccion Construction, Inc. and APY Holdings, Inc.; as well as additional stations by Caltex and Pilipinas Shell.

Atwood said Total is targeting at least five percent share of the retail business by 2004 as it expands the number of its service stations to 76.

It now has 61 service stations operating with 13 service stations in Metro Manila, eight in Pampanga; six in Bataan and Cavite; five in Laguna and Pangasinan; four each in Bulacan, Batangas and Tarlac; two in Nueva Ecija and Bicol region and one each in Lucena and Zambales.

Total vice president for retail Gilles Cartier said the company is planning to put up a total of 100 gasoline stations in 2005.

Atwood also said the market share in the LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) sector will have increased to 10 percent next year from this year’s eight percent.

"Our two fundamental business are in retail stations and LPG. We continue to be focusing on these two businesses," Attwood added.

At present, Total operates a $20-million oil depot and international terminal facility in Bataan.

It also maintains a $5-million Manila fuel depot, which started its commercial operations in May with a capacity of nine million liters. It also shares an LPG terminal located at Tabangao, Batangas.