New fuel depot in Cape Town

Jeeva Chetty, national operations manager, Engen Petroleum says while Engen and Chevron's relationship of some 20 years' standing has been enormously beneficial to both companies, operating a ‘tenant depot' gives the company little procedural and decision-making control, leaving it powerless to respond quickly to customer needs.

“We ran a small office at Chevron and waited our turn along with their other customers. Now that we have our own operation, our bulk truck operators have commented that hours of loading time have shrunk to minutes. The cumulative time saving is of enormous value.

“While it represents a considerable investment to Engen, having our own facility is a strategic move that gives us a clear competitive edge in managing our inventory and providing our customers with a better service.”

The other motivating factor, he says, is to stand a better chance of preventing a recurrence of the fuel shortage experienced in the Cape some years ago.