Gull opens first southern station
Discount fuel retailer Gull has opened its first South Island station, offering some of the lowest prices in the country.
Gull Maheno on State Highway 1, south of Oamaru, opened yesterday morning.
Motorists can fill up with regular 91 for $1.97 and diesel for $1.29. According to petrol price comparison app Gaspy, yesterday morning the price for 91 at nearby Maheno Service Centre was $2.09.
Gull NZ general manager Dave Bodger said the launch had been a long journey and would bring the ‘‘Gull effect’’ – driving down the price – to North Otago.
Gull plans to open its next station in Gore later this month.
The fuel retailer plans to open six more over the next two years.
‘‘Following that and further north of these initial two sites, we own one further site, with agreements to develop and lease in place or close to finalisation for four others with several other good conversations happening for other outlets in other areas,’’ Bodger said.
The sites included four in Christchurch’s central city and suburbs, which Gull hoped to open in 12-18 months.
He did not want to reveal other locations to competitors.
Bodger said each new unmanned station would cost about $1 million, excluding land cost, and Gull expected to open one or two each year after the initial six.
The Automobile Association petrol spokesman Mark Stockdale said Gull would help bring prices down for South Islanders.
‘‘It will increase competition in the South Island which has been missing out on the type of price competition that is prevalent in the North Island,’’ Stockdale said. Gull was able to charge a lower price because it had lower overheads and that forced competitors to match their prices. In the North Island the Gull effect could bring down prices by as much as 20 cents per litre, he said.
Two years ago, Gull was bought by Caltex Australia, which is separate from the Caltex chain of petrol stations in New Zealand. Gull launched in New Zealand in 1998 with the building of its state-of-the-art terminal in Mt Maunganui. It has grown its network to 92 branded sites.