Bulls residents hope for cheaper fuel prices with new petrol station

Wednesday, 6 January 2016

Construction has started on Waitomo Petroleum's new fuel stop in Bulls.

Bulls residents are hoping for cheaper petrol when a new petrol station comes to town.

Hamilton-based Waitomo Petroleum is building a new unattended, pay-at-the-pump petrol station in Bridge St.

The new pump is expected to open in mid-January.

Bulls resident Shayn Connett said he was hoping competition from the new fuel stop would be good for drivers.

'It worked out in Foxton. Waitomo have got one there and it seems to have dropped the prices.'

The family-owned Waitomo Petroleum mostly operates in the Waikato and Auckland areas. Bulls, and the existing stop in Foxton is the furthest south they've come so far.

Owner Jimmy Ormsby said by having the stop unmanned they could keep their overheads low and offer fuel at a cheaper price than the big players.

Bulls is a busy crossroad for travellers, and a major truck stop.

AA spokesman Mark Stockdale said opening an unmanned fuel stop there made a lot of sense.

'Not everyone needs service or a shop when they fuel up, so there's certainly a market niche there.'

In addition to petrol and diesel the new fuel stop will offer a product called GoClear.

It's specifically for heavy vehicles fitted with Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) tanks. All newer trucks and campervans have SCR systems to help meet the more stringent vehicle emissions standard introduced in 2011.

The SCR process uses high-grade automotive urea, like GoClear, to significantly lower nitrous oxide emissions by breaking it down into harmless water vapour and nitrogen gas.

Z communications manager Jonathan Hill said Z stations offered an equivalent product, Z-tech, and their Bulls station was one of the first in the country to introduce an SCR-based product.