Shell Companies in Jamaica chairman, Nick Shorthose, discusses developments at the company while its public affairs manager, Aston Cooke, (right) looks on. - Junior DowieSHELL Company (J.W.I.) has commissioned a $19 million facility to meet the demand for its new gasoline product, V-Power, which is specifically tailored for the Jamaican market.
The plant will be based at Shell's headquarters at Rockfort, Kingston where the gasolene will be blended by the company's own technicians.
Shell's total investment in the new gasolene now totals $40 million and includes market research, technical development and marketing communications.
A leading local gasolene retailer has consistently declared that there is no difference in gasolene across the market and that the idea of "new" products was misleading the public. The multinational integrated oil company maintains that the high octane fuel is directly imported ultra -filtered for purity and a specially integrated component added at the company's Rockfort depot.
Fuels
Shell has been aggressive in guiding consumer knowledge that all fuels are not the same.
Shell Companies of Jamaica chairman, Nick Shorthose speaking at a press briefing at the company's headquarters in Rockfort this week said :"Our mandate is to set Shell apart from the other marketing companies, and one of the ways to do this is by investing in research and new product development.
"We recognise that it may be a tough proposition for many to believe that an international company like Shell would put so much into developing a fuel specifically for the Jamaican market, but that is exactly our philosophy. We are focused on a higher standard of performance, and we're in this business for the long haul."
The war of words among the leading fuel retailers was brought about by one of the most comprehensive research programmes on fuels in the country conducted by Shell, with the company's findings showing that the primary concerns of Jamaican motorists are: challenging driving conditions on urban and rural roads; the responsiveness of their vehicle during overtaking and the need for a fuel that was consistent and reliable.
Response
On the market's response to V-Power, Mr. Shorthose said:" With V-Power coming onstream, our sales of 90 octane have increased by 43 per cent surprising many of our dealers and we have had to rush in extra supplies of V-Power into Jamaica."
In an effort to deal with the increasing security-related incidents that afflict dealers on the Central America and Caribbean retail network, Shell has devised a "tool kit" which should guide dealers in security management. Shell is fully aware of the high volumes of cash that are kept on its forecourts and if not handled properly dealers become a security target.
Shell Jamaica's supply and distribution manager, Winston Ormsby, said that the company's Jamaican operations will be implementing full cash management procedures at all its sites. The target is to have 80 per cent implementation in dealer operated sites by December 2001, and the objective is to significantly reduce security incidents. In a poll conducted among 120 countries where Shell operates, Jamaica was deemed a "medium term risk" out of categories ranging from low, medium, high and critical.
