The Kalibrate fuel round up: June 2023

Kalibrate works with a diverse range of fuel organizations, so we always have our ear to the ground to see how the environment is evolving. This helps us understand the challenges and opportunities facing the brands we support, but it also helps us keep across the news, innovations, transformations, trials, and tribulations, within the fuel space.

Prices falling in the UK

After the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) raised concerns last month that supermarkets and retailers were enjoying particularly high margins on diesel, the average price of diesel in the UK has fallen by 7.44p per litre. The move was led by supermarkets, who quickened the pace of their price drops. Still, the CMA believes retailers could drop their prices by a further 6p per litre and still enjoy margins above the long-term average.

Media attention around the topic of fuel prices remains high in the UK, which is unsurprising when inflation continues to erode consumers’ purchasing power. As always, we recommend that fuel retailers active in countries where media scrutiny of fuel prices has increased remain vigilant, monitor traditional and social media sentiment, and make sure they have the tools in place to quickly take action if needed.

EV initiatives gain pace globally

EV initiatives are being undertaken all around the world: BP is looking to develop a public charging infrastructure in Australia; Engie is launching its new Vianeo electric mobility brand in France; TotalEnergies has signed an agreement to install 500 public charging points in Berlin; and EG Group has stated that the EV rapid charging sector has great potential for growth both in the UK and across its global network.

At Kalibrate, we have been helping organizations understand the current EV market and the potential opportunities at their new and existing sites – see where you rank in your preparedness for EV adoption with our EV Maturity calculator.

Read more on EV adoption projections at the World Resources Institute.

Are petrol and diesel engines a thing of the past?

On the topic of electric vehicle adoption, recent conversations in the media have focussed on the claim that petrol and diesel engines are dying. According to those with this view, continuing to use a 19^th century technology makes little sense in an age of digital innovation and rapid decarbonisation. However, this is far from the consensus view on the subject.

While it is certainly true that EV penetration is increasing year-on-year, and that electric vehicles are broadly seen as the future of individual mobility, our view at Kalibrate is that we are still some time away from the death of the petrol and diesel engine – Kalibrate’s team have recently spoken about the future of sustainability in the industry, you can read our views here.

Forward-thinking retailers should be actively evaluating the opportunities and challenges that will derive from increased EV adoption, without losing sight of what is driving profitability now. If you are starting to think about how to incorporate EV charger planning into your organization’s strategy, read more here.