January 24, 2008 Features EIA: average gasoline price to peak at $3.50 this spring Both motor gasoline and diesel prices are projected to average over $3 per gallon in 2008 and 2009, with monthly average gasoline prices peaking near $3.50 per gallon this spring, according to the Short-Term Energy Outlook issued this month by the Energy Information Administration (EIA). Global oil markets will likely remain tight through 2008, then ease moderately in 2009, according to the Outlook. (Full Story) GM gives boost to ethanol effort; some plans by others face hurdles While General Motors has announced it will invest in a new company that plans to produce inexpensive ethanol, plans by others for ethanol production are encountering public opposition or other obstacles, according to news reports. Local authorities in Conoy Township, Pa., are reviewing a $100 million corn-to-ethanol distillery proposed for construction by Lancaster Biofuels on a 65-acre tract near the Susquehanna River. (Full Story) Get The Data That Drives The Petroleum & Convenience Industry Today! Order your copy of the 2007 NPN MarketFacts today for the introductory price of only $195 (plus shipping and handling). To order your print copy and/or CD version of the 2007 NPN MarketFacts edition, please click here Circle K taps Cardtronics for processing services for 650 in-store ATMs Circle K has chosen Cardtronics, Inc. to process ATM transactions for Circle K owned and operated ATMs across the United States Midwest and Great Lakes regions, Cardtronics announced Jan. 22. (Full Story) Tobacco Plus Expo April 24-25 in Las Vegas; registration available online The 2008 Tobacco Plus Expo will be held April 24-25 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. (Full Story) Starbucks testing $1 cup of coffee Starbucks is testing $1 cups of coffee, according to a Wall Street Journal article published Jan. 23. (Full Story) In the U.K.: VocaLink to operate HSBC's ATMs in convenience stores Transaction specialist VocaLink has secured a three-year outsourcing contract with HSBC to deliver end-to-end operation of HSBC's new remote ATM estate in convenience stores across the U.K., according to a Jan. 24 report by Banking Business Review Online. (Full Story) House fails to override Bush veto of children's health insurance plan The U.S. House of Representatives on Jan. 23 failed to override President Bush's second veto of the bill passed by Congress to expand the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). (Full Story) Detective work, luck, nabs suspect convenience store burglaries A West Virginia sheriff credits "just plain luck" with a year-old investigation that led Pennsylvania authorities to arrest a man that they believe ended a three-state crime wave primarily targeting convenience stores and banking machines, according to a Jan. 22 article by Paul Peirce in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. (Full Story) Rallying against credit card fees The Asian American Convenience Stores Association's third annual convention last month featured education, entertainment and networking for its members - but its most important function was as a rallying cry for a fight against the major credit card companies on the issue of high credit card fees charged to convenience and gas stores, reported Paul Imbesi in a Jan. 20 article in IndUS Business Journal. (Full Story) Casey's General Stores executive resigns Casey's General Stores Inc., Ankeny, Iowa, confirmed Jan. 22 that its corporate secretary has resigned, reported the Associated Press. John G. Harmon, 53, who also was a senior vice president, entered a severance agreement dated Jan. 17, according to documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the AP reported. (Full Story) Web site helps Nashville drivers find cheapest gas in town Since launching in 2001, the Web site has relied on commuters to post the lowest prices they see, according to a Jan. 22 article by Charles Booth on the Web site Tennessean.com. (Full Story) High fuel prices puzzle some observers in L.A. market The middlemen who buy and sell fuel on the wholesale market have seen Los Angeles gasoline prices plunge more than 50 cents in the last two weeks, but drivers aren't seeing the full benefit at the pump, according to a Jan. 22 article by Elizabeth Douglass in The Los Angeles Times. (Full Story) Re-branded: Beacon & Bridge stores tout Michigan goods If the name Beacon & Bridge brings to mind Michigan's abundance of lighthouses and the Mackinac Bridge, then you might enjoy the changes at longtime Quik-Sav convenience stores, reports Rhonda Sanders for the Jan. 20 Flint Journal. (Full Story) Gas tax increase might stay for good in Eugene, Oregon City councilors in Eugene, Ore., implemented in 2005 a 2-cents-per-gallon gas tax increase that was designed to expire at the end of February 2008, but now councilors are debating whether to make the tax permanent, according to a Jan. 22 article by Jason Reed in the Oregon Daily Emerald. (Full Story) Illinois: site of gas station in Swansea is contaminated The area surrounding an abandoned gas station in Swansea, Ill., where workers have been removing underground gas storage tanks is contaminated with leaked gasoline, a spokeswoman from the office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal said, according to a Jan. 18 article by Laura Girresch in the News-Democrat. (Full Story) In Florida: RaceTrac stations add ethanol-blend gas RaceTrac is now selling ethanol-blended gasoline in Central Florida, the Orlando Sentinel reported in its Jan. 21 online edition. The Atlanta-based company has started pumping gasoline blended with up to 10 percent ethanol at several stations across the region, according to the Sentinel. (Full Story) BP accuses Bulk Petroleum of selling generic gas as BP brand fuel BP Products North America Inc. has filed suit in federal court in Wisconsin against Bulk Petroleum, accusing Bulk of selling generic gas under the BP trademark, according to WKBT-TV, a CBS affiliate in La Crosse, Wis., that cited a Jan. 18 report by the Associated Press. (Full Story) Obscure Delaware law of 'divorcement' shapes fuel pricing A decades-old Delaware state regulation, called "divorcement," bans oil companies from setting prices at the pump, according to a Jan. 20 article by Eric Ruth in The News Journal. (Full Story) In Oregon: Rogue Valley Oil fined in gas station cleanup Oregon environmental officials fined Rogue Valley Oil Co. $22,933 fine for failing to analyze the extent of underground contamination at an intersection in Medford, Ore., according to a Jan. 17 article by Damian Mann in the Mail Tribune. (Full Story) Rutter's to invest $55 million in new stores, car washes, in 2008 Rutter's will invest more than $55 million this year to build 10 convenience stores and 11 car washes as part of the biggest one-year capital expenditure in the company's history, it announced in a Jan. 18 press release. (Full Story) VeriFone Makes Payment at the Pump Secure Secure PumpPAY is VeriFone's solution for upgrading gas pump card payments to meet the payment card industry (PCI) security standards. Secure PumpPAY is a universal solution that works with pumps manufactured by virtually all U.S. and most European suppliers and has already been installed at initial sites in Europe, Middle East, Asia and the U.S. The Secure PumpPAY solution is anchored by the PCI-approved OP4100, which includes an ATM-style keypad and a card reader that accepts EMV chip and magnetic stripe credit and debit cards, as well as support for all major contactless payment schemes. The OP4100 will support VeriFone's patent-pending technology to cryptographically mask account numbers and magnetic stripe data throughout the retailer's system. Secure PumpPAY incorporates the OP 4100, printer and mounting kit; services including PCI certified installation, PCI assurance program; and a full range of support options. VeriFone www.verifone.com Calendar of Events SIGMA Winter Committee Meetings Salt Lake City, UT February 7-8 (703) 709-7000 www.sigma.org SIGMA Executive Leadership Conference Snowbird, UT The Cliff Lodge February 10-13 (703) 709-7000 www.sigma.org WPMA Convention The Mirage Las Vegas, NV February 19-21 (801) 263-9762 www.wpma.com The Work Truck Show 2008 Georgia World Congress Center Atlanta, GA Convention: Feb 25-28, 2008 Trade Show: Feb 26-28, 2008 (800) 441-6832 in the U.S. (248) 489-7090 in Canada www.ntea.com ASD/AMD Trade Shows Las Vegas Sands Expo Center, Mandalay Bay Convention Center, Mirage Events Center & Grand Ballroom Las Vegas, NV March 2-5 Melissa Younkin (310) 481-7325 Southeast Petro-Food Marketing Expo Myrtle Beach Convention Center Myrtle Beach, SC March 5-6 (803) 419-0804 For a complete list of industry events, go to NPN's calendar web page.  Published By NPN Group |  © 2008 NPN Group | All Rights Reserved For more information on NPN MarketPulse, contact: Gary Bevers, group publisher M2MEDIA360 Retail Distribution Group Ph: 832-444-7675 Fax: 800-430-3446 Keith Reid, editor-in-chief M2MEDIA360 NPN Group Ph: 630-739-0280 Fax: 630-739-0321 This newsletter is protected by United States copyright and other intellectual property laws and may not be reproduced, rewritten, distributed, re-disseminated, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast, directly or indirectly, in any medium without the prior written permission of M2MEDIA360.

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