Aramco-Total JV said to launch new fuel stations in 3-6 months

Saudi Aramco will operate its newly acquired retail fuel stations, under its joint venture with Total, within three to six months, Al-Eqtisadiah reported, citing Abdulaziz Al-Judaimi, Saudi Aramco’s senior vice president of Downstream and chairman of the JV Board.

The stations will be modernized to provide high-quality services, and the number of stations is expected to increase by 5-10 percent, he said.

State-owned oil giant Saudi Aramco and France's Total on Thursday signed agreements with the owners of Tas’helat Marketing Company (TMC) and Sahel Transport Company (STC) to acquire TMC and STC, thereby jointly acquiring their existing network of 270 service stations and their fuel tanker fleet.

Saudi Aramco’s presence in the market creates healthy competition to best serve the consumer, Al-Judaimi said.

The market currently has 10,000 fuel stations competing and Aramco’s share will be 3 percent through 270 fuel stations— a number that will gradually increase, he added.