Northern Ireland fuel review 2018

Tackling future challenges in the NI Fuel industry

The latest summary of the forecourt market by Experian Catalist UK shows mixed results for the sector in Northern Ireland. With some figures decreasing and others on the rise, Neighbourhood Retailer looks at the factors behind this growth, and what these figures could mean for the future of the industry in 2019 and beyond.

The number of open sites in Northern Ireland saw a drop in 2018, from 572 last year to 559. Although the number of company-owned forecourts has risen, 18 sites owned by independent retailers have been closed. The number of sites owned by hypermarkets has remained the same.

However, despite these closures, experian catalyst researcher Arthur Renshaw says has actually had a positive impact on the industry.

“The problem is that Northern Ireland has a lot of small, unbranded petrol stations that are not sustainable. There are too many, and so a lot of them have had to close. But this has not had a negative affect on the quality of the network. It anything, the quality of the network has increased because other bigger oil companies are thriving as a result.”

The table below sets out this information alongside further data on market shares and fuel volumes sold in 2018:

 Maxol still remain the market leader, with a 16.2 per cent of the market fuel market. However, the company has seen a 0.3 per cent decrease from last year with one less open site. One of the biggest changes to this year’s fuel market is the taking over of Topaz’s sites by Circle K. In April the company bought over Topaz’s 48 forecourts as well as adding on another one of their own – ending the year with a total of 49.

Emo opened 4 new sites, experiencing a market share increase to 2.9 per cent. Solo and Star also have both added on another 3 sites to their total last year, with an increased market share to 5.3 and 5.1 per cent. On the other hand, Food Store and Texaco both saw figures drop with the closure of two sites.

This information along with data on market share by outlet numbers is contained in the table below:

 Forecourt convenient stores across Ireland continue to lead the way in modern design, up to date technology, and adaption to the contemporary food industry. It’s a sector in which we compare favourably with any other region in Europe.

Expert Arthur Renshaw says: “Northern Ireland is pushing the boundaries, and is now ahead of the rest of the United Kingdom in the overall quality of their forecourts. This is largely a result of the development of their convenience stores.”

The table below shows the percentage of NI sites by brands that include a shop and car wash: