The four-digit fix
SA fuel retailers may have to spend as much as R230m to upgrade fuel pumps to reflect a four-digit fuel price.
According to the SA Petroleum Industry Association (Sapia), about 18500 fuel dispensers will need to be upgraded or replaced to deal with the price of fuel shooting through R10/l Sapia says about 1350 retail sites have been affected by the price of diesel rising above that level.
Kevin Sheel, the retail business manager for Engen, which has a market share of about 27%, says up to three different kinds of upgrades will be needed on Engen’s forecourts and in its forecourt shops.
The first step was a software upgrade — which has already been completed. Electronic components will need to be replaced, and in the most extreme cases the fuel pump as well.
Sheel estimates that the upgrades could cost the company about R60m. This amount, Sheel stresses, is a ballpark estimate and can vary depending on what decisions are ultimately made.
The industry has been given until the end of December to complete the upgrades. At sites with pumps that can accommodate only R9,99/l, all prices and volumes have been divided by 10, and stickers that indicate that prices must be multiplied by that number have been stuck next to the relevant counters.
It is not clear yet how the industry will choose to fund this, and an approach to government for support has not been ruled out.
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