Chevron plans 100 more service stations in 3 yrs

Chevron (Thailand) plans to open 100 Caltex service stations within three years, as it sees room to grow despite the fluctuation in global crude-oil prices.

"After we add 100 stations within three years, we expect our market share to increase by 3 percentage points from 10 per cent currently," Adrian Bendeck, country chairman and general manager for products, said yesterday.

Each outlet costs from US$500,000 to $1 million (up to about Bt31 million) depending on the location, station size and the facilities and infrastructure in the station, he said.

The expansion rate of 30-35 stations per year is a little higher than the average 20-25 stations. ??Whose average, the industry’s or Chevron’s???

Individuals are welcome to co-invest in the filling stations, so it is difficult to mention the exact budget that Caltex alone will invest in the roll-out, Bendeck said.

Chevron now operates 470 service stations nationwide, with the Central region and the South as its strongholds.

Chevron expects its sales volume this year to grow by 2-3 per cent. The overall market is about 300 million litres per month. Sales of liquefied petroleum gas are growing faster, at 5 per cent per year.

Chevron will continue distributing 95-octane petrol at about 85 Caltex stations. It would like to maintain its dominant 75-per-cent share of the market for that kind of fuel, he said.