station Archives - Ireland's Forecourt & Convenience Retailer

Plans lodged for new fuel station and garage in Tuam

Linda Stewart — Wed, 05 Oct 2022 10:20:53 +0000

Plans have been lodged for a new fuel station and garage in Tuam.

The development is led by Corrib Oil Limited and would be located on the Ballygaddy Road at Airglooney.

It would include the construction of a commercial warehouse and vehicle repair building, and fuel storage and distribution depot, as well as a sales forecourt, shop and offices.

Galway county planners are due to make a decision in November.

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Circle K Ireland opens newly redeveloped site in Arklow, Co Wicklow

Linda Stewart — Wed, 05 Oct 2022 08:38:20 +0000

Circle K has offically opened its newly redeveloped company owned site on the Dublin Road in Arklow, Co Wicklow.

Circle K Safeway is the first Circle K company owned site in Arklow and will be open seven days a week. Circle K has invested €1.9 million in redeveloping the site, where it will employ a total of 11 staff from the local Arklow area.

The renowned Circle K product offering will be available at the new location including Circle K’s deli menu, which includes a huge variety of combinations. Also available in-store will be Circle K Coffee, Circle K’s K-Freeze iced drink range, signature Real Hot Dog range, and full wine range, as well as delicious ice cream.

Circle K’s next generation miles and milesPLUS fuel will be also available to customers at the new Arklow location, where six brand new pumps were added, as well as a new car wash, customer parking and toilet facilities.

The new store will also include SafePay, an end-to-end closed cash system that combines intelligent algorithms and cutting-edge technology to offer a secure payment solution. This means, staff will never need to handle cash manually, which additionally will reduce the level of administrative activity associated with traditional cash handling. The SafePay systems will enhance levels of security at the location creating a safer environment for all Circle K employees.

Circle K Safeway also has been designed with LED lighting throughout all indoor and outdoor spaces, helping to reduce energy usage at the site.

To celebrate the opening of Circle K Safeway, a range of promotional offers will be available to customers throughout October including food deals, half price on car wash facilities and discounts on fuel.

Speaking about the opening, Paul Dixon, Senior Director of Retail Sales and Operations, Circle K Ireland commented: “Today is a day of celebration for Circle K Ireland as we open our newly redeveloped service station in Arklow, Co Wicklow.

“Having taken this site back from a dealer partner 3 years ago, we were passionate about delivering a state of the art Circle K store for the area. This site now gives us a presence in Arklow with a store that matches our customer experience throughout the country following a significant investment. This new location also highlights our continued commitment for further expansion across Ireland.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to welcome our new colleagues to the Circle K family, led by store manager Bernie Doran from Arklow, and share a special thanks with Eugene Doherty and Declan Keenan who have been working at the site intermittently for the past 30 or so years.

“I look forward to making customers lives a bit easier every day and bringing our impressive product range to the community of Arklow in Wicklow.”

For more information on Circle K, visit www.circlek.ie, Circle K Ireland on Facebook or @circlekireland on Twitter and Instagram.

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Entrepreneur Ennis aims to fuel HGV fleets for less with cleantech venture

Linda Stewart — Mon, 26 Sep 2022 09:20:06 +0000

Having previously disrupted the energy sector with Vayu, Irish entrepreneur Tony Ennis is hoping to do it again with a new cleantech venture aiming to fuel HGV fleets at a significantly lower price than traditional fossil fuels.

The businessman plans to build a series of bio-methane refineries in Britain and Ireland through a company he chairs called Manby BGE as part of a projected €1 million spend.

The refineries will break down organic matter such as animal waste through a process called anaerobic digestion, with all gas produced reserved specifically for use by the heavy goods transportation sector.

Ennis is also planning for 2050 Group, a second business he chairs, to establish a nationwide chain of refuelling stations rather than selling the bio-compressed natural gas (Bio-CNG) that Manby BGE produces through other distributors.

Ennis told the Business Post that Manby BGE is already going through the planning process for its first bio-gas refinery in Lincolnshire at a projected cost of €150 million.

The group intends to develop four more sites in Britain and two in Ireland, with Ennis claiming there is strong interest from backers in the project. Each refinery would be capable of producing up to 6000 cubic metres of gas every hour, more than enough to fuel 1,000 HGVs operating 24/7, 365 days a year.

Ennis previously founded Vayu in 2003, which was the first independent firm to get a gas supply licence in Ireland and won 30 per cent of the industrial and commercial market, before he sold his stake for €10 million in 2011.

He said Manby GBE’s plan is to build up to 12 sites in the next decade.

“We’ve lots of other investors who want in on this. There was already huge interest in the plan before the war in Ukraine but the impact of that on energy prices, combined with the need for businesses to do more on the ESG front, means that what we are proposing is proving to be very attractive,” he said.

“This is very much a means of ensuring security of supply while also accelerating the green agenda.”

Ennis believes there is a strong opportunity to get truck drivers using fuel that is cheaper that fossil fuels and less damaging to the environment.

“Forget about hydrogen. Bio-CNG is the only real commercially viable alternative to diesel for HGVs. One truck consumes more energy in a week than your average household does in a year. HGVs account for just 5 per cent of all vehicles on European road, but with responsibility for 25 per cent of all emissions,” he said.

The planned refineries will also process biodegradable waste to extract CO2, which will be sold to the drinks industry. The remaining bio-gas can then be used for the transport sector or injected into the gas network, with a third product, fertiliser, that can be returned to farmers for use on their lands.

Currently, there are four publicly available CNG/Bio-CNG stations in Ireland and a small number of private ones. Research undertaken by 2050 Group estimates that close to 50 stations would be able to supply 80 per cent of the fuel needs for HGVs. The company is currently looking at developing up to 20 stations itself, in order to speed up the availability of bio-CNG gas for transportation.

2050 Group already has a Bio-CNG fuelled delivery truck contracted to Spar owner BWG Foods. Ennis said HGVs can run at a cost of €0.43 per km, versus diesel with a 10 per cent biofuel blend, which costs €0.76 per km.

“Ireland per capita has the most amount of agricultural waste that can be turned into fuel in Europe, but we’ve probably done least to take advantage of this. In other countries, there have been moves towards using Bio-CNG for fuelling trucks, but we’ve not followed. We have a huge opportunity, and I’m determined to lead the way in addressing this,” Ennis said.

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Inver’s Leading Lights initiative supports Blood Bikes South East with €1,000 donation

Linda Stewart — Thu, 18 Aug 2022 11:07:43 +0000

More than 80 motorcycles gathered at Inver Slieverue Service Station on Saturday July 23 to begin their annual Kenny and Wayne Memorial Bike Run.

The run is in memory of two brothers, Wayne and Kenny Scannell, who tragically passed away within years of each other. Since its inception, the event has proved hugely successful in raising a substantial amount of money for organisations that need extra support like Waterford City River Rescue and the paediatric ward at University Hospital Waterford.

This year the Scannell family decided to fundraise in aid of Blood Bikes South East. Established in 2020, Blood Bikes South East directly serves hospitals and communities across the South East and links up with other blood bike groups to provide a completely FREE nationwide service, which benefits hospitals, laboratories, nursing homes, patients, and their families.

They transport many urgent medical items such as blood products, medical samples, medical records, scans, x-rays, test results, medicines, and medical devices. Blood Bikes South East is a 100% volunteer run, no one is paid for their service and all funds raised go directly into the service they provide to the community.

To mark this exciting event, Inver Slieverue Junction presented Blood Bikes South East with a €1,000 Leading Lights donation.

Leading Lights is Inver’s unique initiative where each Inver Service Station has the opportunity to support and recognise organisations and charities that put an effort and time into making their communities a better place. Through this programme, Inver is committed to making a positive and long-lasting contribution to people’s lives.

This donation fits seamlessly with Inver’s ethos of supporting local communities, families, and education.

Store manager Sean said: “Blood Bikes South East is a truly inspiring voluntary organisation providing out-of-hours runs to ensure that those who need help can get it at any time.”

Inver would like to thank the Scannell family for organising such an amazing event and everyone who supported this fantastic fundraiser.

Caption: Mick Canavan, Dewald Groenewald, Abraham Allen, Paul Brierton, Brenda Forrest, Ronnie Evans, Clare McGowan, Niamh Phelan, Stephen Hampson, Sabrina Scannell

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