NP chairman: No more outlets for EVs...yet

NATIONAL Petroleum Marketing Company Ltd (NP) chairman Sahid Hosein says apart from one of its service stations, the company does not have any plans at this time to build additional outlets to charge electric-powered vehicles.

He made this comment during a meeting between company officials and members of the Public Accounts Enterprises Committee (PAEC) at the Red House in Port of Spain.

In response to questions from Government Senator Laurel Lezama-Lee Sing, Hosein said NP’s service station at Preysal has outlets where electric vehicles could be recharged. None of its other stations have those facilities.

Hosein said this was because the pricing mechanism to put such outlets in service stations had not been worked out. He added this was a policy decision to be made by the Energy Ministry.

Responding to questions from Independent Senator Hazel Thompson-Ahye, NP general manager (retail & industrial fuels) Angelique Phillip said the company has a total of 22 Quik Shoppes in its retail network.

She added that NP looks at improving the level of service there on a regular basis. This prompted Thompson-Ahye to offer a personal opinion on some of the products sold at NP Quik Shoppes: “My bread (that I bake) tastes better.”

Hosein and Beeput could not directly answer Thompson-Ahye’s questions about whether NP is collaborating with the Airports Authority and the Tourism, Culture and Arts Ministry to increase the number of flights on the domestic airbridge to boost local tourism. But they said an increase in these flights was beneficial for NP because it meant increased fuel sales.

Phillip estimated that NP currently has a 70 per cent share of the domestic market for liquid fuels and petroleum products.

She also said many of the service stations that form its retail network were stations it had inherited from oil companies such as Esso and Texaco, which no longer operate in TT.

Phillip said NP looks to maximise the use of retail stations wherever they are located. As an example, she said a new station opened last year in Mayaro has the ability to serve several communities in southeast Trinidad.

Energy Minister Stuart Young formally opened that station last year and dedicated it to his predecessor Franklin Khan, who died on April 17, 2021.