Thursday December 21, 2006 FEATURES Gas stations said to have more leeway in marketing ethanol after EPA ruling Ethanol in concentrations of 20 and 30 percent can be sold from blender pumps and used in flexible-fuel vehicles, according to a ruling by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The ruling came in response to an inquiry from the South Dakota Petroleum and Propane Marketers Association, which represents about 500 gas stations, and the South Dakota Association of Convenience Stores. (Full Story) Issue of 'hot gas' grows hotter; lawsuit filed against 17 companies "Hot gas," the subject of a series of articles in The Kansas City Star last August, is heating up again. It is the subject of a lawsuit filed last week against 17 oil companies and gasoline and diesel retailers. (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. EXPERT CORNER When Reputation is Everything Fernando Crosa, President/CEO, US Tank Alliance Inc. Failing to comply with EPA mandates can be expensive for petroleum retailers. Aside from costly fines, proprietors who fail to monitor underground storage tank testing and cleaning risk the expense of having pumps shut down for repairs, contaminated fuel dispensed to patrons and the possibility of a costly environmental cleanup in the event of leaks or spills. (Full Story) NEWS ITEMS Hess budgets $75 million to expand retail network in 2007 Hess Corp. on Dec. 19 said it has budgeted $3.6 billion for capital and exploratory spending for 2007. (Full Story) Holiday schedule NPN MarketPulse, the weekly e-newsletter, will not publish on Thursday, Dec. 28, in observance of the holidays. NPN MarketPulse and NPN Magazine wish all a happy and safe holiday season.(Full Story) The Pantry to acquire eight stores in Florida from Rousseau Enterprises The Pantry, Sanford, N.C., announced Dec. 18 that it would purchase eight convenience stores in Florida. The deal will boost the company's acquisition count for fiscal 2007 to 65 locations, according to the Triangle Business Journal. (Full Story) Redbox DVD rental machines to be tested in GetGo convenience stores Giant Eagle, Pittsburgh, Pa., will test Redbox automated DVD rental units. The Redbox units will be tested in five GetGo convenience stores in the Pittsburgh market beginning this month, Vending Market Watch reported Dec. 19. (Full Story) In New York: District attorney charges gas stations misrepresented octane Three gas stations in Nassau County, New York, have been charged with duping consumers out of as much as 20 cents per gallon by charging "premium" prices for "regular" gasoline, The North Country Gazette reported Dec. 18. (Full Story) Four Circle K stores in Memphis sell for almost $3.6 million Circle K Stores Inc. has bought four Circle K locations in Memphis from a New York company for nearly $3.6 million, according to The Daily News, a newspaper in Memphis. (Full Story) In Texas: Cigarette tax to jump by $1 per pack; property taxes to decrease Starting Jan. 1, cigarette smokers in Texas will have to fork over an extra dollar for each pack they buy, The News-Journal reported Dec. 17. (Full Story) Hawaii not so idyllic for smokers: state enforces strict no-smoking measure Hawaii has implemented one of the nation's strictest no-smoking laws. (Full Story) JTI (UK) Management Ltd. to acquire Gallaher Group Plc JTI (UK) Management Ltd, a subsidiary of Japan Tobacco Inc and the Government of Japan, agreed to acquire through a tender offer Gallaher Group Plc for GB£7.5 billion (US$14.7 billion) in cash. (Full Story) In Mississippi: Chevron expands refinery capacity by 10 percent Chevron Corp., San Ramon, Calif., said Dec. 18 that it has completed an expansion of its Pascagoula, Miss., refinery designed to boost capacity by approximately 10 percent, or 5.5 million gallons, The Associated Press reported. (Full Story) Groups charge Big Oil with fraud, saying hot fuel means less energy Truck drivers and motorists in seven states filed a complaint Dec. 13 against 17 oil companies and gasoline and diesel retailers alleging overcharging at the pump for fuel heated above the industry standard, according to Public Citizen and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA). (Full Story) 'Alcopops' classification to be re-considered in California The California Board of Equalization has agreed to schedule hearings to review the classification of "alcopops" beverages as distilled liquors instead of as malt liquor, Santa Clara County officials said, according to a Dec. 17 report by CBS Broadcasting and Bay City News. (Full Story) Association of Shell Marketers names executive director: Darrell K. Smith The National Association of Shell Marketers (NASM) this month announced the appointment of Darrell K. Smith as executive director. The trade association, based in Springfield, Va., represents wholesale distributors of Shell petroleum products throughout the United States. (Full Story) Armor Safe Technologies acquires NamSYS self-service product line Armor Safe Technologies, The Colony, Texas, said Dec. 12 that it has closed on the acquisition of the NamSYS commercial self-service product line, from NamSYS Inc., Bolton, Ontario. (Full Story) Sheetz opens 5,000-square-foot store in Farmville, Va., Sheetz, Inc. on Dec. 14 opened a 5,000-square-foot store at 2016 South Main Street in Farmville, Va. (Full Story) Tesco to open its first U.S. stores in Orange County, California Tesco PLC plans to open stores in Fullerton and Laguna Hills and is considering a number of other sites in Orange County, California, as part of its closely watched venture in the U.S. (Full Story) Liquor commission mulls single-serving ban in Bloomington, Ill. In Bloomington, Ill., officials may target certain retailers or neighborhoods in a campaign to prohibit the sale of beer, wine and spirits in single-serving containers of less than 24 ounces, The Pantagraph, a local newspaper, reported Dec. 14. (Full Story) In Alberta's oil patch: c-stores pay top wages to draw workers Northern Alberta's "oil patch" is booming. (Full Story) OPEC aims to cut oil production in move to keep oil above $60 per barrel OPEC said Dec. 14 that it planned to reduce its oil production by almost two percent in February, the group's second output cut in two months and its strongest signal yet that it aims to keep oil prices above $60 a barrel next year, The New York Times reported Dec. 14. (Full Story) Philip Morris USA raises cigarette prices Philip Morris USA said Dec. 13 that it was raising prices on all its cigarette brands by 10 cents per pack as of Dec. 18, a move that had been expected by analysts, Reuters reported. (Full Story) Sheetz offers VeraSun E85 fuel for 85 cents per gallon Sheetz, Inc. said Dec. 13 that it is offering VE85 fuel at 85 cents per gallon as part of a special five-hour promotion at three Sheetz, Inc. locations in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Full Story) Gateway Newstands acquires the Convenience Store Group Gateway Newstands, Vaughan, Ont., announced Dec. 12 that it has acquired the assets of the Convenience Store Group. (Full Story) Prime Time Group, in rapid rollout, now spans western Canada Prime Time Group Inc., Fort Lauderdale, Fla., said Dec. 12 that it has completed its phase II roll out across western Canada. With its Kiosk-In-A-Box concept, it successfully executed a rapid roll-out over the past weekend in four new locations. (Full Story) 7-Eleven to add 30% more stores in U.S., Canada by 2010 7-Eleven Inc.'s CEO said the company aims to add 30 percent more North American outlets by 2010, Bloomberg News reported Dec. 14. (Full Story) Visa USA launches prepaid contactless program Visa USA announced Dec. 13 the launch of its first contactless prepaid cards. Visa said the cards would provide consumers a faster and more convenient way to pay, while offering merchants increased revenue opportunities, increased throughput and improved customer loyalty. (Full Story) PRODUCT OF THE WEEK EZ-ID to simplify alcohol/tobacco sales for retailers Grinnell, Iowa-based LTE Inc. has announced the development EZ-ID, an age-verification scanner that checks information on a customer's driver's license and uses a red or green signal to let retailers know whether the customer is legally permitted to buy alcoholic beverages or tobacco. One EZ-ID costs around $400 and reads magnetic stripes used on driver's licenses in about 20 states. A bar-code version that reads licenses from all 50 states sells for about $900. LTE Inc. www.EZ-ID.net CALENDAR OF EVENTS NACS Introduction to Category Management Seminar: Turning Plans into Action The Westin Indianapolis Indianapolis January 16-17 (703) 684-3600 www.nacsonline.com SIGMA 2007 Executive Leadership Conference Silvertree Hotel Aspen/Snowmass, Colo. February 11-14 (703 )709-7000 www.sigma.org   PACE - Petroleum and Convenience-Store Exposition of Mid-America Overland Park Convention Center Overland Park, Ks. February 16-17 (573) 635-7117 www.mpca.org WPMA Convention & Convenience Store Expo The Mirage Convention Center Las Vegas February 20-22 (801) 263-9762 www.wpma.com   AWMA REAL DEAL EXPO Las Vegas Hilton Las Vegas February 21-23 (703) 208-3358 www.realdealexpo.com NASM Convention & Exposition World Golf Village and Renaissance Resort St. Augustine, Fla. March 5-8 (703) 922-9784 www.nasmonline.com   For a complete list of industry events, go to NPN's calendar web page.  Published By NPN Group |  © 2006 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 Chris Traczek, 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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