First Arizona Ethanol Plant Opens
Kinder Morgan Completes Sale of Gas Distribution Network
Fire Causes $1 Million in Damages at Pilot
Tesco Announces San Diego Store Plans
Gilbarco To Service Shell and Motiva U.S. Stations
Clean Energy To Supply Long Beach CNG Stations

FIRST ARIZONA ETHANOL PLANT OPENS

MARICOPA, AZ. — Pinal Energy has opened a new ethanol plant here, the first ethanol plant in the state of Arizona.

The $74 million facility, which opened on July 12, is a division of Arizona Grain. The 35-year-old company has been marketing grain and feed but decided to build an ethanol plant to diversify their operations and increase products from their crops. The company also plans to market the carbon dioxide created when the corn ferments and to sell it to local food packers and bottlers. They will use conveyor belts to move its used grain next door to feed cattle.

Pinal Energy says the ethanol they manufacture will be sent to a Phoenix tank farm to mix E10 for the fuels market.

Pinal Energy officials say that even with higher corn costs and lower ethanol prices, the business is "profitable with federal subsidies in place until at least 2010."

KINDER MORGAN COMPLETES SALE OF GAS DISTRIBUTION NETWORK

LAKEWOOD, CO. — Kinder Morgan, Inc. has completed the sale of its U.S. natural gas retail distribution operations Colorado, Wyoming, and Nebraska as well as Hermosillo, Mexico, to GE Energy Financial Services and Alinda Investments LLC. The price tag on the deal was $710 million plus working capital.

The natural gas network serves over 260,000 customers through more than 11,900 miles of distribution and transmission pipelines, underground storage fields, and related facilities.

The retail gas distribution business' headquarters will continue to be in Lakewood under the leadership of President Dan Watson.

The transaction, previously announced on August 14, 2006, recently received all required regulatory approvals.

FIRE CAUSES $1 MILLION IN DAMAGES AT PILOT

LENWOOD, CA. — An early morning fire gutted the facility at last week at the Pilot Travel Center here and caused an estimated $1 million in damages.

According to local reports, the fire was caused by a clothing dryer on the west side of the truckstop. "There was a lot of smoke, so it was difficult to find the seed of the fire," said Barstow Fire Protection Division Chief Sal Corrao.

Corrao also noted that there was "no worry" about the blaze spreading to the truckstop's fueling equipment.

Firefighters from the Barstow district, the San Bernardino County Fire Department and the Marine Corps Logistics Base Fire Department all responded to fight the fire which took approximately two hours to contain.

Pilot has closed the station and removed the fuel from the Travel Center while they are determining if they will reopen the site.

TESCO ANNOUNCES SAN DIEGO STORE PLANS

SAN DIEGO, CA. — United Kingdom-based Tesco has announced that it will be opening seven of its Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market stores in the greater San Diego-area of Southern California.

"We think our stores' approach to bringing fresh, high quality foods to the neighborhood will be a hit with San Diego consumers," said Tim Mason, Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market CEO.

For the U.S. launch of the stores, which are expected to compete against convenience stores with their small format, Fresh & Easy researchers spent time in the homes of consumers looking at shopping and cooking patterns, according to Mason. "We literally went into their kitchens and looked in their refrigerators," he said. "Based on our research, we are confident our stores will be a hit in every neighborhood we open in."

He also noted that Tesco's research showed it could reach Hispanic consumers by "offering a mix of authentic and national brand products that households use, together with low prices, quality meat and produce and a clean store environment."

The sites of the new stores in the San Diego area will be: Campo and Kenwood, Casa de Oro, CA.; Catalina and Cannon, Point Loma, CA.; East Vista and Vale Terrace, Vista, CA.; East H and Tierra Del Ray, Chula Vista, CA; Lake Murray and Navajo, San Diego, CA.; Main and Ammunition, Fallbrook, CA.; and Valley and Ash, Escondido, CA. Tesco officials said that these seven sites "have already been secured and additional locations are being researched."

The San Diego locations join planned store sites in Las Vegas, NV., and Phoenix, AZ.

Tesco currently operates more than 1,000 stores in seven countries.

GILBARCO TO SERVICE SHELL AND MOTIVA U.S. STATIONS

GREENSBORO, NC. — Gilbarco Inc. has signed a deal with Shell Oil Products US to provide maintenance services for fueling equipment at 1,900 Shell-branded stations in the United States.

Under the new arrangement, the stations that are owned by Shell Oil Products US and Motiva Enterprises are covered by the Gilbarco services. Shell and its station operators will be able to utilize Gilbarco's 24-hour Maintenance Services Support Center and have access to analysis and reporting from Gilbarco's web-based Fuel Management Services System.

The maintenance deal was signed in June and became effective in July.

CLEAN ENERGY TO SUPPLY LONG BEACH CNG STATIONS

LONG BEACH, CA. — Clean Energy has signed a ten-year deal with the City of Long Beach, CA., to operate and supply the city's three public compressed natural gas (CNG) fuel stations.

Under the terms of the deal, Clean Energy will manage, maintain, and supply CNG fuel to the stations. In addition, the company agreed to upgrade each location with state-of-the-art fuel dispensing, compressor and support equipment.

The three CNG stations are located at 2400 E. Spring St., 400 W. Broadway and 120 Pier S Avenue in Long Beach. The volume at the stations is estimated to be 6,500 CNG fill-ups per month for Southern California alternative fuel vehicle drivers.

Announcing the deal, James Harger, senior vice president, Clean Energy, Seal Beach, CA., said, "Long Beach has been a clear leader in promoting the use of alternative fuels to a range of fleets and users. We look forward to expanding the deployment of natural gas vehicles further, for both the health and environmental benefits of all citizens in the area."

Originally published in the September 2007 issue of O&A Marketing News.
Copyright 2007 by KAL Publications Inc.