Thursday August 9, 2007 FEATURES EIA: Gasoline prices projected to decline through 2007 Gasoline prices at the pump are projected to continue to decline through the end of 2007 and then begin their seasonal increase next spring, according to the Aug. 7 Short-Term Energy Outlook issued by the Energy Information Administration (EIA). As of Aug. 6, retail motor gasoline prices have fallen by almost 40 cents per gallon from the spring peak of $3.22 per gallon on May 21, even as the price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil has risen by over $9 per barrel (22 cents per gallon) over the same period, according to the Outlook. (Full Story) Should employees be fined for tobacco sales to minors? City councilors in Springfield, Mass., are considering a proposed ordinance that would levy a $100 penalty on store clerks found to have sold tobacco products to underage consumers, and the New England Convenience Store Association told NPN MarketPulse that the idea makes sense. "NECSA does not oppose a fine on a store clerk who violates the law," said Diana O'Donoghue, executive director of the association. (Full Story) Little Shop of Horrors — To Build or To Buy? For today's fuel marketer, big decisions loom around every corner. None may be as important as your back office technology. Should you build or buy? Many operators decide to build their back office system, hoping to save money. We've all heard it before, "That boy of mine is good with computers!" (Full Story) Sign up for a FREE subscription to NPN, the magazine that has been reporting news and trends in the petroleum and convenience store industry since 1909. SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT Get The Data That Drives The Petroleum & Convenience Industry Today! Order your copy of the 2007 NPN MarketFacts today! For a limited time only, take advantage of a special prepublication price and save more than 15% off the retail price. To order your print copy and/or CD version of the 2007 NPN MarketFacts edition, please click here NEWS ITEMS Outcry forces Mac's to pull videos promoting a slush drink Nine short video clips produced and posted online by Quebec-based Mac's Convenience Stores to promote a new slush-drink flavor aimed at 16-year-old boys were pulled after consumers and employees complained, according to an Aug. 8 article by William Lin of CanWest News Service. (Full Story) MasterCard Advisors launches weekly report on U.S. gasoline demand MasterCard Advisors, the professional services arm of MasterCard Worldwide, on Aug. 7 introduced its Spending Pulse U.S. Gasoline Demand Report, the first report that provides detailed information on the total amount of gasoline the U.S. pumps each week. (Full Story) Triton announces release of the RL2000 ATM Triton on Aug. 7 announced the production launch of the RL2000, billed as "an affordable, feature-rich stand-alone ATM." (Full Story) S&P: The Pantry has advantages of scale and geographic range Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said in a peer comparison report that convenience store operator The Pantry Inc. enjoys the advantages of scale, geographic range and less reliance on gasoline sales compared with peers such as Susser Holdings, CNN reported Aug. 6, citing AFX News Limited as its source. (Full Story) Delek US Holdings reports net income increase of 59% Delek US Holdings, Inc., Brentwood, Tenn., on Aug. 7 reported record net income of $67.2 million, or $1.29 per diluted share, for the second quarter 2007 compared to $42.2 million, or $0.88 per diluted share for the second quarter 2006. (Full Story) Alon USA reports record quarterly results; declares quarterly cash dividend Alon USA Energy, Inc. on Aug. 7 announced the most profitable quarterly results in Alon's history. (Full Story) Petroleum Equipment Institute co-presents biofuels webinar Robert Renkes, executive vice president and general counsel for the Petroleum Equipment Institute (PEI), said Aug. 6 that he co-presented a webinar on "Biofuels Infrastructure." (Full Story) Racing to 10 percent ethanol use presents some problems Ethanol use easily has eclipsed requirements of the federal Energy Policy Act of 2005, a law that mandates the use of 7.5 billion gallons by 2012. (Full Story) Pilot Travel Centers to refuse credit cards Pilot Travel Centers is the latest fuel retailer and service station chain to stop accepting Visa and MasterCard at the pump, according to an Aug. 3 article in Today's Trucking online. (Full Story) Chicago alderman calls for boycott of BP Chicago's most powerful alderman called Aug. 2 for a boycott of oil giant BP -- by city government and consumers alike -- to stop the company's refinery in northwest Indiana from dumping more pollution into Lake Michigan, according to an article by Fran Spielman in the Chicago Sun-Times. (Full Story) U.S. House shifts $16 billion in tax incentives to renewable energy The U.S. House of Representatives on Aug. 4 passed a Democratic rewrite of U.S. energy policy that strips $16 billion in tax incentives away from Big Oil and puts it toward renewable energy sources like wind and solar power, reported Chris Baltimore of Reuters. (Full Story) Senator introduces bill that would require temperature compensation U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill on Aug. 3 introduced the F.A.I.R. (Future Accountability In Retail) Fuel Act that would require the installation of automatic temperature compensating equipment in all retail gas station pumps within six years to adjust the price of gas as it expands due to warmer temperatures. (Full Story) Express Lane convenience stores file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Waddill's Markets Inc., doing business as Express Lane, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Aug. 3 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court Western District of Missouri, News-Leader.com reported. (Full Story) Cumberland Farms to carry Coinstar 'Pay as You Go' product line Coinstar, Inc. and Cumberland Farms announced Aug. 1 that Coinstar E-Payment Services' full range of 'pay as you go' products will be available to consumers at approximately 600 Cumberland Farms stores. (Full Story) In Minnesota: tribe buys out competing convenience store After less than two years in business, a Kwik Trip in Prior Lake, Minn., has been sold to the Shakopee Mdewakanton Dakota Community (SMDC), according to an Aug. 1 business news item in the Shakopee Valley News by Lori Carlson. (Full Story) In North Carolina, a 'Katrina' case: fuel distributor to pay fine A gasoline distributor accused of illegally conspiring to fix prices and trying to force a Durham, N.C., station operator to raise prices by 40 cents per gallon has agreed to change its ways and pay $25,000, North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper said Aug. 1. (Full Story) UL on track to accept E85 dispenser products for testing by year-end 2007 Underwriters Laboratories (UL), Northbrook, Ill., announced Aug. 2 that it will accept requests for certification investigations for gaskets and seals for use with concentrated ethanol-blended fuels such as E85. (Full Story) Kum & Go selling 21 stores as it focuses on larger store format Kum & Go, West Des Moines, Iowa, announced Aug. 3 that it has retained The Energy Exchange of Chicago to coordinate a sealed bid auction of 21 Kum & Go stores and 12 surplus sites. (Full Story) Mark VII launches direct operations in New England Mark VII Equipment Inc., Arvada, Colo., announced July 31 that it has begun to directly sell and service Mark VII equipment in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine. (Full Story) PRODUCT OF THE WEEK NationLink Wireless, Fleet One to Offer Customized GPS to Fleet One Customers NationLink Wireless and Fleet One announced a joint agreement to offer an enhanced GPS tracking system to all Fleet One customers. Through Fleet One Vehicle Tracking, developed by NationLink's AIC-GPS business group, Fleet One will offer customers the benefits of GPS tracking along with a customized feature to direct drivers to stops that accept the Fleet One fuel card for fueling, repairs and other services. The benefits of NationLink's AIC-GPS solution include improved vehicle routing, reduced fuel costs, decreased idle time and lower insurance premiums. Through Fleet One Vehicle Tracking, the two companies are taking those benefits a step further by offering fleet managers a customized program powered by both cellular and GPS technology. NationLink Wireless www.mynationlink.com CALENDAR OF EVENTS NACS Leadership Executive Program Cornell University Ithica, N.Y. August 19-23, 2007 (800) 966-6227 www.nacsonline.com AWMA Distribution Summit & Business Exchange Ritz-Carlton Buckhead Atlanta, Ga. Sept. 10-13 (800) 482-2962, ext. 642 www.awmanet.org   Pacific Oil Conference and Tradeshow Grand Sierra Resort and Casino Reno, Nevada. September 17-20 (916) 646-5980 www.petroshow.com Pennsylvania Petroleum Marketers & Convenience Store Association Fall Energy Conference The Nittany Lion Inn State College, Penn. September 17-19 (717) 902-0210 www.ppmcsa.org   Insight NACS Future of International Convenience Retailing London, UK September 24-28 Contact: Dan Munford +44(0)1936-556-090 www.nacsonline.com South Dakota Petroleum and Propane Marketers Association/South Dakota Association of Convenience Stores Annual Convention and Expo Ramkota Hotel Rapid City, S.D. September 25-26 (605) 224-8606 www.sdp2ma-sdacs.com   For a complete list of industry events, go to NPN's calendar web page.  Published By NPN Group |  © 2007 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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