PRAGUE When the Directorate of Roads and Motorways (ŘSD) starts the Chotýčany rest area on the D3 motorway near České Budějovice in two years’ time, a pair of the latest MOL petrol stations will also stand there. The Czech daughter of the Hungarian concern, which ranks second on the market with 304 petrol stations, recently won a tender to build these two motorway pumps.
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MOL ČR received a lease for 20 years, which is already the standard term, for a price which, according to information from the Lidovky.cz server, is close to ten million crowns per year for both pumps. Last year, for example, in the competition, Shell gained the right to build a pair of pumps at the Dolní Roveň rest stop on the D35 motorway under construction near Pardubice for a similar amount.
Every year, the state announces about one or two such tenders, and the largest oil companies are fighting over the possibility of occupying busy, and therefore lucrative, localities. The pump on the highway is usually a guarantee of high earnings. And so are the sums that the state’s oilmen offer for their rent.
In a situation where fuel consumption is generally growing only very slowly, petrol stations on Czech motorways are a welcome recovery in pumpers’ incomes. At least for those large and capital-strong companies.
Strategic location
“It is the advantage of a strategic location, but also the ability to offer comprehensive customer service. We clearly see the potential in this, especially with regard to our coffee & gastro concept Fresh Corner and the offer of energy for cars, “describes the business of highway pumps Ivo Velíšek, sales director for retail at MOL CR.
Highway pumps, of which there are over a hundred in our country so far, benefit from the fact that drivers usually do not want to go off the highway for longer journeys due to refueling and refreshments. And they also draw at significantly higher prices, ie with significantly higher margins for sellers than what pumpers in the regions charge at the moment. Truck drivers are a major source of income for motorway pumps in this regard.
The largest companies have their own refueling cards and advantageous discounts. The larger the network, ideally also widespread and known abroad, the greater the number of trucks refueling hundreds of liters.
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Precisely because of the targeting of lucrative truck drivers, diesel is the dominant fuel everywhere. And “truckers” are also the reason why small independent networks usually have minimal chances on highways. They cannot compete with offers of millions of crowns a year for the rental of rest. Respectively, they would not be able to earn high rents, because they are not so attractive for truck transport and proven for drivers from abroad.
“Non-branded pumps do not have the same margins from fleet customers as branded large networks. Famous brands such as Shell, MOL, Benzina and, in part, OMV also play a role in where the truck stops refueling, ”says Ivan Indráček, head of the Petrol Station Community.
Highway newcomer Čepro
The state-owned company Čepro, which includes 205 Euro Oil filling stations, the vast majority located in the regions and off the motorway, also started the motorway business. While large oil companies already have years of experience with the operation of motorway stations, Čepro did not start competing on Czech motorways until 2018 on the D47 near Ostrava, where it leased two pumps previously operated by Shell.
The company opened two more Euro Oil stations last July on the D1 near Křenovice, where parking spaces for 58 trucks operate on both sides. Čepro expanded its services as required by the ŘSD with refueling, trade and gastronomic facilities, including social facilities.
“After the positive experiences we have gained near Ostrava in two years, we have decided to strengthen our position on the main highway of the Czech Republic,” said Jan Duspěva, CEO of Čepra.
There are over a thousand pitches for trucks
Until now, the ŘSD often first built rest and parking spaces and then had pumps built on them. Now that this is possible, both buildings are being prepared at the same time as part of the acceleration.
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Hundreds of parking spaces for trucks are still missing in the Czech Republic, and the construction of rest areas, including facilities, therefore needs to be accelerated. Simultaneous construction of a recreational “place” and a gas station is also a case of the Chotýčany mentioned near České Budějovice.
There are 130 larger and smaller rests in operation in the country, and the ŘSD is planning 22 more. It is preparing a large-scale construction with 140 parking spaces for passengers and the same number for trucks, for example at Holovous near Hořice on the D35 or with a hundred parking spaces for cars and 86 for trucks at Vyškov on the D1.
This year, ŘSD intends to announce a competition for the construction of a pump for the already completed Osek rest area on the D1 between Lipník nad Bečvou and Přerov. “This year, one bilateral rest on the D35 Dolní Roveň is being implemented with the planned commissioning in 2022, and the construction of a rest on the D3 Chotýčany will begin. There will be gas stations on both. Other constructions of rest areas will be started in 2023 and there will be no filling stations at all of them, only at medium and large ones, “said Jan Studecký, a spokesman for the ŘSD.
“It is estimated that more than a thousand truck stands are still missing. Despite the large number of events, due to the constant growth of freight transport, the shortage cannot be significantly eliminated, “added the spokesman of the ŘSD.
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