Long-suffering motorists have been promised cheaper fuel by a new player intent on “bringing real competition” to Wagga.
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Australian-owned family business APCO has unveiled plans to build a $6 million service station at the western end of Edward Street later this year.
It comes after the NRMA warned Wagga’s fuel prices were unlikely to come down without more competition.
APCO director Peter Anderson has vowed to break the major retailers’ stranglehold on the Wagga fuel market.
“Once we move in, the other independent will say ‘bugger, he’s cheaper than us’ and it will become a cat and mouse game to drive the price down,” Mr Anderson said. “That will mean lower petrol prices for Wagga.”
On Saturday APCO had Albury’s cheapest petrol at $1.27 a litre for Unleaded 91, 18¢ cheaper than Caltex, Coles Express and BP.
On the same day, petrol at APCO’s Albury service station was 3¢ cheaper than Wagga’s Silvalite Fuel Stop and Metro Petroleum Ashmont, and a full 10¢ a litre cheaper than United, Caltex, Shell and BP.
Mr Anderson claimed there was a negligible difference in cost transporting fuel from Victoria to either Albury or Wagga, meaning prices shouldn’t vary greatly between the two cities.
“Albury and Wodonga have always been cheaper than Wagga, but they’re only just down the road so there’s not a lot of extra road costs,” he said.
The fuel mogul, whose father started the Anderson Petroleum Company (now APCO) in the late 1970s, claimed the secret to keeping prices down was sourcing fuel from unencumbered wholesalers that don’t have retail arms to prop up.
APCO has purchased its 1.09 hectare block off Wagga truck customisation and smash repairs company Truck Art, which will move to a larger site in Bomen.
APCO was outbid by United in 2006 for the site on the corner of Hammond Avenue and Kooringal Road, but Mr Anderson has been visiting local real estate agents twice a year ever since.
The service station will also feature drive-through coffee and a convenience store.
Mr Anderson pledged to hire local tradies to develop the service station and expects it will employ up to 25 casual casual and six full-time workers once fully operational.
A development application has been lodged with Wagga council.
