Jet is to roll out its own-brand, ultra-rapid electric vehicle chargepoint package, Jet Charge, after a “rigorous” feasibility study among its dealer-owned forecourts.
It is in the process of installing the 360kW/h equipment at Forfar Road in Dundee, which will have four EV charging bays, and at Hillside Terrace in Selkirk in the Scottish Borders, which moved from Shell to Jet in August 2023, and will have two bays. Starthill in Rochford, Essex, has just completed its installation of one charger, with final commissioning underway.
Jet says Jet Charge, currently operating at seven sites, is helping to attract forecourt operators from other oil suppliers and retain their loyalty. Jet Brentford, for example, last May renewed a four-year contract with the fuel supplier citing Jet Charge as a factor. It has two chargepoints installed.
Jet Hillside Terrace, and Oasis Services in Long Riston, Hull have recently switched fuel suppliers to Jet.
Jet announced last summer it was making Jet Charge available to some of its dealers after a two-year trial at four of its 11 company-owned forecourts.
Operators benefit from not having to buy the chargers. Instead, Jet will cover the cost, and lease part of the forecourt operator’s land to install the equipment.
It says its point of difference over rival EV charging systems is the simplicity of its pay-as-you-go customer service, with no app to download or minimum charging payment required. Customers present their bank card, plug in, pause, present the card again, unplug, and drive off.
Oliver Blake, managing director of Oasis Services in Hull, which moved back to Jet from Gulf in January this year, says Jet’s EV arrangement was “too good to turn down”.
At the time he told Forecourt Trader: “Everyone was very close on fuel pricing, but nobody else was offering anything like what was proposed by Jet for EV charging. Jet will pay us for two bays and once we hit a certain threshold, we will switch to a profit share. It means there is no initial risk involved.”
And for Jet Brentford a “quick and easy to use re-charge” was important for its customers. “Jet Charge is a great addition to the Jet brand, and for dealers like us, who operate in high-density urban areas with a higher concentration of EV drivers, it’s the missing piece of the puzzle,” says its business development and operations manager, Manoj Agnihotri.
Jet says that its own petrol filling stations, Beacon Garage in Catterick, and Abbeyside at Selby, both in North Yorkshire and with three charging bays, and dealer-owned site Jet Cooper Bros in Wishaw, North Lanarkshire, with two chargers, have recorded a significant increase in footfall since installing the EV charging stations.
And according to Jet Cooper Bros, the chargers have created incremental business. “EV customers have all been complimentary about how easy to use and accessible the chargers are, with many taking the opportunity to use the shop,” says operations director Garry Gibson.
Phillips 66, which owns the Jet brand, says its Abbeyside site recorded more than 800 charges in the last quarter of 2024. “Jet Charge is bringing new customers to the Jet brand every day, many of whom shop while waiting to power up,” says Phillips 66 managing director, UK marketing, Rupert Turner. “Add increased footfall and a commitment from us to meet the costs of installation, and it’s a compelling offer more and more of our dealers are looking to explore.”
