Want to open your own petrol station? This is how much you’ll need to have in the bank
- South Africa burns a lot of petrol – and selling it is an often lucrative business.
- But be warned, it is not for everyone, there’s plenty of red tapes, and it isn’t cheap.
Highlights
The cheapest stations cost around R1 million, but if you want a popular location and all the trimmings, you can pay 20 times this. Here’s how to open your own independent petrol station, or buy an existing petrol franchise, and the advantages and pitfalls of each. South Africa pumps more petrol than any other country on the continent – some 11.7 billion litres per year, according to the Department of Energy. Diesel isn’t far behind. Although traffic levels dropped off significantly during 2020’s Covid-19 lockdowns and may take some time to recover, petrol stations are still likely to generate profits for a while to come yet.
If this, along with South Africa’s high petrol price, sounds like money to your ears, keep in mind that the link between the amount of fuel pumped, and the profitability of a petrol station, is not always that direct. The profits from these billions of litres of fuel don’t all end up in the pockets of petrol station owners. Filling stations in South Africa are tightly regulated, and more than 60% of what consumers pay goes to levies, taxes, and margins.
Highlights
Factors like labour costs, fluctuating oil prices, port delays, the power of large oil companies, and the strength of the rand, can all impact on station owner profit margins, and increase unpredictability.
Couple that with the need for huge capital outlay and large amounts of working capital, and you might actually be happier to continue paying someone else to handle the hassle of filling up your vehicle.
Fuel stations are also starting to diversify, which means there’s potential to add other income streams to your business. Although fuel sales still make up the majority of the profits at filling stations in South Africa (according to Absa, between 80% and 90% of profits), the additional income from forecourt businesses like convenience stores, coffee shops and restaurants, can be a nice supplement.
Opening an independent fuel station
The independent route allows for greater freedom, and potentially greater profit, without the restrictions of a parent company. In theory, if you know what you’re doing and have enough cash, you can establish a filling station with your own brand.
You can’t open a petrol station anywhere you like, though. New sites require approval from the government, and you’ll need to jump through several legislative hoops as stipulated in the daunting Petroleum Products Act regarding petroleum products site and retail licences.
As part of the process of opening an independent petrol station, you’ll need to obtain environmental authorisation and land use rights. Once you have these approved you apply for your operating licenses. Not getting the approval right could be a real problem.
If you’re familiar with the petrol industry or have run a station before and you want to go independent, your best bet is to purchase an existing filling station that has all of the red tapes already sorted. This may enable you to bypass some aspects of the Petroleum Products Act that governs locations of new stations.
Opening a petrol franchise via Engen, Shell, or other oil companies
Like other types of franchising, it may be a far safer option for first-time owners to buy an existing franchise from one of the major oil companies. Even these are rare. Most leading petrol station brands appear to advertise just one or two on their websites every few months.
Cost of petrol franchises
The cost of these franchises varies according to the location, fuel pumped, and other add-ons like convenience stores.
The group is asking for R6.8 million, with working capital of R1.5 million, for this location.
Larger stations in the network can go for a lot more. Those that pump in excess of 200,000 litres and come with a forecourt Quickshop have previously fetched R4 – 6 million.
Engen requires more than cash to be successful. Applicants will complete a psychometric assessment at their own cost to ensure a good fit with the business.
Competitor Sasol has fewer locations, but its new, fully-equipped stations are equally expensive. The group was selling an existing filling station last year that cost in excess of R10 million. It was based in Gauteng, with convenience store a monthly pumped fuel average of 315,000 litres.
New and existing franchises, bought directly through the brands they’re associated with, are hard to come by. The above example, available only as a cash purchase, turns over a net monthly profit of R227,854 according to an online listing, which means that it’ll take about a decade of pretty hard work before you realise a profit.
Read More:
Opening a Petrol Station: Click Here
Engen SA’s Favourite Petrol Station: Click Here
Opening a Petrol Station Franchise in South Africa: Click Here
