forecourttech October '21

Technology for the evolving retail forecourt. 

ISSUE: 17 | October 2021 

WE ARE 

BACK! 

forecourttech ‘21 is finally here! This special event 

edition of forecourttech e-magazine includes all 

the information you need to know from speaker 

presentations to delegate lists and more. 

CHRISTIAN WARNING 

TALKS PANEL DISCUSSIONS 

IFSF ANNOUNCES 

VIRTUAL CONFERENCE 

FORECOURTTECH ‘21 

EVENT GUIDE

forecourttech 

Editor’s note 

In this issue we celebrate and focus on the return to 

an in-person event with the forecourttech convention 

taking place on the 12 and 13 October at the Asia Gardens 

Hotel, Alicante, Spain. 

The appetite for face-to-face events is stronger than 

ever and at forecourttech ’21 we have major representation 

from across Europe and, in particular, the 

German market. 

This year the Conference program will include speakers 

from The Maxol Group and Q8 who will elaborate 

on their vision for the future of fuel and convenience 

retailing, with speaker presentations moderated by Mark 

Wohltmann, Director of NACS Global. 

We will also have an exciting addition to the program 

with our panel discussions, debating around topics of 

the day with EV Mobility giants Tesla represented by 

their European Operations Director joining with major 

retailer operators. 

Another first is the forecourttech studio, sponsored by 

BigBrother, which will provide social media coverage 

of the event to include interviews with speakers and 

updates on the key talking points of the day. 

pagethree 

With the need to reconnect, re-engage and source new 

business opportunities, the forecourttech ‘21 meetings 

programme will provide the final, crucial element, facilitating 

those all-important, face-to-face meetings. 

Enjoy the issue! 

The forecourttech brand is owned and 

promoted by SAB Events Europe Ltd. All 

rights reserved. 

The views expressed in this magazine are 

those of the author and do not necessarily 

represent those of SAB Events Europe. No 

part of this electronic magazine may be 

copied or reproduced without the written consent 

of SAB Events Europe Ltd. 

Advertising: 

Stephen Bozdan 

stephen@sabevents.eu 

Features: 

Wendy Taylor 

wendy@sabevents.eu 

SAB Events Europe Ltd. 

The Quadrant 

Surrey 

KT17 4RH 

www.sabevents.eu 

#forecourttech @forecourttech www.forecourttech.com


News round-up 

TotalEnergies and China Three Gorges 

Corporation have signed an agreement to 

establish a Joint Venture in electric mobility 

in China. This equally owned company will 

develop Electric Vehicle (EV) high power 

charging infrastructure and services within 

the Hubei Province, through the installation 

and operation of more than 11,000 high power 

charge points by 2025. 

Travelling from Portugal to France in an electric 

vehicle is now even easier thanks to the 

installation of 40 fast charging stations strategically 

located along primary routes. Mobilize, 

one of the four new business units created 

within Groupe Renault, has joined the European 

CIRVE project, which aims to promote 

e-mobility throughout the Iberian Peninsula 

pagefour 

Spanish companies across the gas value 

chain have signed an agreement to jointly 

develop infrastructure for the production, distribution 

and supply of green hydrogen with the 

goal to establish a national network of hydrogen 

filling stations. In a joint statement, power 

and gas utility Naturgy Energy Group SA, gas 

grid operator Enagas SA and fuels and gas 

storage provider Exolum said that they will 

seek to roll out 50 hydrogen stations, or around 

one per 300 kilometres (186.4 miles), to be 

able to serve Spain’s mobility industry. 

Traffic app Waze is asking UK users to tell it 

which petrol stations have fuel available, amid 

the UK’s shortage of petrol at the pump. 

Checkout-free technology provider Zippin 

has closed a $30 million Series B funding 

round with participation from new and existing 

investors that include OurCrowd, Maven 

Ventures, Evolv Ventures and SAP. The new 

round brings Zippin’s total funding to more 

than $45 million. This follows Zippin’s significant 

progress in recent months, including 

signing numerous new accounts, launching 

multiple new public checkout-free stores and 

further solidifying its leading technology within 

the future of retail, according to the company. 



Shell has announced its aim to install 50,000 

on-street electric vehicle (EV) charging 

points in the UK over the next four years, in 

an attempt to provide a third of the network 

needed to hit national climate change target. 

Earlier this year, the energy company acquired 

ubitricity, a leading supplier of local authorities’ 

on-street EV power points, with a network of 

3,600 chargers in lamp posts or bollards. 

Ghop, the first smart convenience store chain 

in Spain, will focus its expansion plans on the 

petrol station market, according to co-founder 

Lino Monteaguado in an interview with 

infoRETAIL. The Spanish startup is preparing 

the next openings of its smart shops for next 

November in Madrid. Meanwhile, it is in the 

process of finalising a financing round to 

develop its business model. Expansion will 

focus on petrol stations located in city centres 

and industrial areas, and not on sites on the 

road at this stage. 

pagefive 

ABB has launched the world’s fastest electric 

car charger, the Swiss engineering company 

announced, to plug into the booming demand 

for electric cars made by Tesla, Hyundai and 

other automakers. The company is launching 

the new Terra 360 modular charger as it 

presses ahead with plans to float its electric 

vehicle (EV) charging business, which could 

be valued around $3 billion. The device can 

charge up to four vehicles at once, and can 

fully charge any electric car within 15 minutes, 

ABB said, making it attractive to customers 

worried about charging times which 

can run to several hours. 

Toyota Motor Corp’s Silicon Valley research 

arm has announced that it has acquired automotive 

operating system software company 

Renovo to help accelerate the development 

of fully-autonomous connected vehicles. “I am 

hoping to shave off years and months to our 

minimum viable product launches,” James 

Kuffner, the head of Toyota’s Woven Planet 

subsidiary said during a press briefing. 


forecourttech ‘21 

EVENT GUIDE 

forecourttech ‘21 is finally here. Here’s everything you need to 

know ahead of the main event.


WELCOME BACK! 

We are delighted to welcome friends new and old 

to the Asia Gardens Hotel, Alicante for two days of in-person 

learning and networking. It’s been nearly two years 

since our last face-to-face event and in that time so much 

has changed both in and outside the fuel retail industry. To 

discuss these changes and what it means for our industry 

we have put together an exciting line-up of speakers and 

panelists who will debate and discuss the technologies that 

are optimising forecourt operations and enhacing the customer 

experience. You can find out more about this year’s 

speakers and their discussion topics on page 11. 

Another new edition this year is the forecourttech studio 

sponsored by BigBrother. The studio will provide updates 

from the event to our LinkedIn page. If you’re staying at 

home this will give you some unique glimpses into the 

event and for those joining us in Alicante please stop by 

and share your views. 

The Asia Gardens Hotel is taking additional precuations to 

ensure the safety of all guests. You can read about these at 

forecourttech.com/venue/ 

Panel discussions are an exciting new addition for this 

year’s event. We listened to the views of delegates on how 

to make forecourttech even better and panel discussions 

were clearly of interest to the people we surveyed. With 

the support of Christian Warning from the Retail Marketeers 

we have put together two dynamic panels featuring representatives 

from across the industry. You can find out more 

in Christian’s article on page 27. 

Finally we would like to say a huge thank you to our supporters 

and sponsors IFSF, NACS, Openway and BigBrother, 

who have all helped to make this event possible. 

We hope you enjoy your time at forecourttech ‘21. 

Happy networking! 

pageeight 

We will once again use Brella’s leading technology to power 

our event networking. The app puts delegates in charge 

of their meetings schedule, matching them with people who 

have similar business goals. You can even start networking 

ahead of the event with the in-app messenger. Read more 

about the benefits of Brella on page 17. 

SUPPORTED BY: 

DINNER SPONSORS: 

FORECOURTTECH STUDIO: 



AGENDA 

Tuesday 12 October 

Wednesday 13 October 

08.00 

Registration / information desk opens 

08.00 

Registration / information desk opens 

09.00 

09.05 

09.10 

09:40 

Welcome - Stephen Bozdan, SAB Events 

Europe 

Conference Moderator - Mark Wohltmann, 

Director, NACS Global 

Speaker – Zdenko Tobek, Infrastructure 

Expert, Q8 Petroleum 

Speaker - Peter van Nauw Senior Director, 

Dover Fueling Solutions 

09.00 

10.20 

10.40 

11.10 

11.40 

Pre-scheduled meetings 

Refreshment break 

Speaker - Ciaran McNally, Head of Capital 

Development, The Maxol Group 

Speaker - Harald Popke, Senior Product 

Manager Scheidt & Bachmann Fuel Solutions 


10.10 

10.50 

11.10 

11.50 

12.20 




Speaker – Mark Wohltmann, Director, NACS 

Global 

Speaker - Martine Thijs, Global Strategic Accounts, 

ICASA 

12.20 

12.50 

13.50 

15.10 

15.40 

Speaker – Tom Hatton, Head of Pricing, 

Kalibrate Technology 

Lunch 


Speaker - Robert Onion, Chairman, Circle 

Brands 


12.50 

13.45 

15.05 

15.25 

Lunch 



Speaker – Aart van Rooijen, Commercial 

Director, Big Brother 

16.00 

16.30 

19.15 

Panel discussion - Chaired by Christian 

Warning, The Retail Marketeers 

End of day two - free time 

Networking and drinks reception and farewell 

dinner 

15.55 

Speaker – Elias Poyry, Co-Founder & CBO, 

Virta 

16.25 

Pre-Scheduled meetings 

17.05 

Panel discussion – Chaired by Christian 

Warning, The Retail Marketeers 

17.35 

End of day one - free time 

19.45 

Networking reception, drinks and dinner - 

sponsored by Openway Group 


MEET THE 

SPEAKERS 

Everything you need to know about the 

forecourttech ‘21 speakers.


2020: The world stood still but our industry leapfrogged – Best 

practice, innovation and trends from across the globe. 

From last mile delivery to drive-through to cashless payments. As others have just 

quiescently stood by as crisis came, the global convenience ±and fuel retailing 

industry has once again shown their strengths: By coming together, putting 

customers first, serving the community and by leading innovation and retailing 

excellence. 

PREVIEW 

MARK WOHLTMANN 

Director 

NACS Global 

www.convenience.org 

pagetwelve 

The secret of getting ahead is getting started 

Martine will speak about: energy types including the switch from carbon to 

non-carbon fuels; customers and their changing habits; fuel stations as mobility 

hubs; changes in ways of working and clean energy. 

Martine has a wealth of experience in customer account management as well as 

business development. Before joining ICASA in 2010, Martine worked in various 

companies, holding a number of leadership positions, in the areas of business 

consulting and IT management as well as product & service management. 

PREVIEW 

MARTINE THIJS 

Global Strategic Accounts 

ICASA 

www.icasa-group.com 



Electric vehicle charging in the black – time to monetise EV’s and 

their drivers 

The presentation will give an outlook to the rapidly changing EV charging business 

models; provide practical information on forecourt EV charging management 

and operations; give specific data on charging volumes and monetization 

model based on our experience with 40 000 charging stations; will discuss how 

to lure the EV driver to charge at my forecourt instead of competitors and open 

the window to emerging business models related to energy. 

PREVIEW 

ELIAS PÖYRY 

CBO & Co-Founder 

Virta 

www.virta.global 

pagethirteen 

Optimising the Customer Journey 

Taking from BigBrother’s International perspective Aart will provide useful insights 

about best practices in optimizing the customer journey in a hybrid world 

with both online and offline environments. Considering a store or shop as the 

ideal environment to collect data, Aart will share his vision on how this data can 

become useful insights thanks to intelligent processing models. 

PREVIEW 

AART VAN ROOIJEN 

Commercial Director 

BigBrother 

www.bigbrother.nl/en 



Seamless payments - self checkout solutions 

Harald is an API and self-checkout solutions expert for retail mobility. He will 

present new business models and future-oriented solutions that improve the customer 

journey at retail sites. Harald holds a degree in industrial engineering and 

his expertise is built on 10 years of working in digitization projects and product 

management of IoT and cloud solutions. 

PREVIEW 

HARALD PÖPKE 

Senior Product Manager 

Scheidt & Bachmann Fuel 

Retail Solutions GmbH 

www.scheidt-bachmann.de 

pagefourteen 

Optimally Optimizing; the principles of success in fuel pricing 

Tom Hatton will break down the factors that lead to success in fuel pricing. From 

the preparation of a meaningful data environment, to the utilisation of AI – these 

considerations are only a part of the picture. As many of the other speakers 

at forecourttech ’21 will speak about — things are changing in the fuel retail 

environment across the globe and as a result, pricing teams have to adapt. The 

only way to ensure you can successfully adapt to new scenarios is to effectively 

prepare for them. 

PREVIEW 

TOM HATTON 

Head of Product Management 

Kalibrate 

www.kalibrate.com 



Recent technology trends adopted and those of interest to the 

Maxol Group 

Ciaran is the Head of Capital Development and Food Strategy for the Maxol 

Group, in Ireland. He is responsible for the management and capital development 

of the Maxol estate, across its 115 company owned filling stations North 

and South of Ireland. 

The role includes the development of the group’s food strategy, as well as managing 

all of the food franchises the company operate within their stores. 

PREVIEW 

CIARAN MCNALLY 

Head of Capital Development 

Maxol 

www.maxol.ie 

pagefifteen 

Technologies enhancing customer experience 

Zdenko is Q8 expert in electronic payments, micro payments & real time transactions 

processing. Currently engaged at Kuwait Petroleum Global Cards Business, 

especially Q8 payments cards affiliate for commercial road transportation on 

international scale. For Zdenko the payments industry is not just a job but also 

a hobby. Through his professional carrier he managed developments & operations 

in many business-critical payments systems and services supporting card 

payments in various networks of service stations streamlined from Europe, Asia & 

Pacific regions. 

PREVIEW 

ZDENKO TOBEK 

Business IT Infrastructure 

Kuwait Petroleum 

www.q8.com 



Technology driving design 

Robert is the founding member of Circle Brands. Working as Chairman, Robert 

oversees the strategic direction for all projects and guides client relationships for 

all clients. He is recognised as an international authority on branding for the fuel 

and convenience retail sector and leads numerous successful brand and design 

projects. 

‘Our portfolio of success stories demonstrates our commitment to long-term partnerships 

with our clients, working together to deliver successful brands’. 

PREVIEW 

ROBERT ONION 

Chairman 

Circle Brands 

www.circlebrands.co.uk 

pagesixteen 

Driving the customer experience - a supplier perspective 

At this year’s forecourttech, I will be providing a supplier perspective on how to 

drive the consumer experience using the power of technology. Digitization is 

not only revolutionising the experience for the end customer, but it is key to the 

success of the retailer and in my presentation, I will discuss a number of aspects 

related to this topic, including the impact of COVID-19 has had on speeding up 

the adoption of contactless payment technology for many fuel retailers around 

the globe and has indirectly resulted in a faster, more convenient payment experience 

for the customer. 

PREVIEW 

PETER VAN NAUW 

Snr. Director Systems & 

Payment 


www.doverfuelingsolutions.com 


TECHNOLOGY POWERED 

NETWORKING 

Are you ready to take your event 

networking to the next level? 

We have once again teamed up with Brella, 

the world’s leading in-person event matchmaking 

platform to provide delegates the 

ability to communicate with each other and 

pre-schedule their meetings agenda. Take 

a look at the video tutorial to help get you 

started. 

Visit forecourttech.com/networking for more 

information, or if you have any questions 

about the app email susan@sabeevents.eu 

Authorization of Fuel 

Pumps and Charging 

Stations – HecFleet Eco 

and Heconomy Eco 

Future-proof and a secure investment 

Use of fuel and electricity in mixed 

operation 

Don‘t hesitate to 

contact us! 

Hectronic GmbH 

Allmendstrasse 15 

D-79848 Bonndorf 

Tel. +49 7703 9388-0 

mail@hectronic.com 

HecFleet Eco 

Heconomy Eco 

Manifold identification and authorization 

options as well as card 

acceptances 

All from one source, with recommendation 

for type of charging station 

Available as stand or wall housing 

Comprehensive after-sales service: 

Support hotline, employee training 

and repair centre 

www.hectronic.com

Tomorrow’s 

Energy 

Management, 

Today. 

A cloud-based software suite 

to manage all your energy 

www.ICASA-group.com

SOLUTION 

PROVIDERS 

Meet the international solutions providers 

attending forecourttech ‘21.


A2i Systems 

ACI Worldwide 

Leveraging data science for a digital future. 

A2i uses ground-breaking AI technology to make 

advancements in ways to interact with your 

customers at the forecourt. We are giving you the 

opportunity to transform your business and be ready 

for the next phase of Fuel Retail. 

ACI Worldwide — the leader in real-time payments 

— delivers the mission-critical real-time payments 

software solutions that enable corporations to process 

and manage digital payments, power omni-commerce 

payments, present and process bill payments, 

and manage fraud and risk. 

In short, we’re helping banks, merchants and billers 

capture rising real-time opportunities and volumes, 

all to meet the shifting needs of their consumers and 

business customers. 

www.a2isystems.com 

www.aciworldwide.com 

Astro Baltics 

Astro Baltics is an IT company with over 20 years of 

experience. Our aim is to offer complex IT solutions to 

help you build a smart and easily administrative 

company. We are the leading developer of fueling 

station solutions in Estonia with solutions for payment 

- OPT, Smart Pay At Pump, physical & cloud based 

forecourt device controllers and software to run the 

stations. 

Bever Innovations 

Bever Innovations is a manufacturer of intelligent 

high-quality LED solutions for the international petrol 

retail industry, with a 100% focus on this market. 

Bever Innovations products are based on EOS 

Technology: it connects the devices, equipment and 

processes on a forecourt to the Internet of Things. 

www.astrobaltics.eu 

www.beverinnovations.com 



BigBrother 

BigBrother provides business operators in the 

petrol, carwash and retail sector more grip on their 

daily processes by protecting vulnerable products, 

human capital, controlling their activities as well as 

using innovative solutions to improve their customer 

experience and boost profits. In addition to keeping 

an eye on your business, our solutions are the key to 

tomorrow´s challenges in retail. 

Circle Brands 

Circle is a retail brand and design consultancy 

We bring a fresh perspective to energy, fuel and 

convenience retail brands by creating Brand Space 

for our clients. 

This method, exclusive to Circle, allows us to rethink 

your retail strategy and define a new vision for your 

brand and retail environment. It results in highly distinctive 

brands and transforms your physical space. 

Talk to us about how our Brand Space approach 

can help you capture attention, build customer loyalty 

and stand out from the competition. 

www.bigbrother.nl 

www.circlebrands.co.uk 


Dover Fueling Solutions (“DFS”), part of Dover 

Corporation, is comprised of the product brands of 

ClearView, Fairbanks, ProGauge, Tokheim, Wayne 

Fueling Systems and OPW’s Fuel Management 

Systems, and delivers advanced fuel 

dispensing equipment, electronic systems and 

payment, automatic tank gauging and wetstock 

management solutions to customers worldwide. 

Faschang Service & Management 

Faschang Service & Management GmbH has been 

dealing with the subject of servicing and maintenance 

for more than 10 years. 

Based on this longstanding experience, we can offer 

you a wide range of services. From consultation & 

conception through to adaptation & integration, we’ll 

support you in implementing our software package 

for maintenance management, OMIS 4.0. In addition, 

we’ll assist you with the introduction, training and 

ongoing support of the application. 

www.doverfuelingsolutions.com 

www.omis.at 



GripHero 

It all started with the simple aim of providing driver 

protection with ultimate convenience. 

However, through our determination and commitment 

to continuous improvement, we’re absolutely delighted 

the results have been globally game-changing for 

both the environment and the industry. 

We want to make the customer journey on forecourts 

a better experience for drivers, and importantly for 

forecourts to succeed within their own health, safety 

and environmental improvement policies through 

using best-practice driver protection. 

ICASA 

With over 30 years of experience in providing powerful 

software solutions, ICASA has, over the years, built 

a solid reputation in the energy sector. we focus on 

the niche sector of energy and provide our customers 

a total package for their downstream activities. 

Due to the automatic handling to integrate logistics, 

administrative and financial processes in one central 

management system, ICASA helps to maximize 

productivity of your organization and to control costs. 

Business processes become more efficient after all, 

lead times of orders become shorter, inventory costs 

become lower and furthermore the customer focus 

and service level increase. 

www.griphero.com 

www.icasa-group.com 

Istobal 

Istobal is a European leading supplier of car wash 

equipment, with Headquarters in Valencia, Spain, and 

a global distribution scope. We design, manufacture 

and market car wash equipment and accessories 

for the automotive, truck and bus, and rolling stock 

industries, as well as a full range of biodegradable 

chemical products and water treatment solutions. Our 

energy-efficiency systems and products are the result 

of the company ś strong commitment to the 

protection of the environment. ISTOBAL is listed as 

a key supplier of carwash equipment by many of the 

major Oil & Gas top companies. 

Kalibrate 

For over 20 years, Kalibrate has advised fuel and 

convenience retailers worldwide on how to be best 

in-class operators in the fast changing marketplace. 

Kalibrate provides strategic expertise and technology 

solutions in fuel pricing, location planning, 

merchandise promotions and global market 

intelligence. 

www.istobal.com 

www.kalibrate.com 



Mepsan 

Mepsan established in 1992 and has become one of 

the most reliable manufacturers for fuel dispensing 

and management solutions with high-end intergated 

technologies. Mepsan contributes to the concept of 

modern forecourts by designing and 

manufacturing multifunctional and eye-catching 

products and solutions. 

NACS Global 

NACS | Global is an exclusive, globally connected 

network of passionate, forward-thinking senior representatives 

of convenience- and fuel retailers and their 

suppliers, who want to stay ahead of the curve and 

be “in the know”. 

NACS | Global supports its members to advance their 

businesses and their careers, through: 

- Offering commercial and strategic connections to 

relevant, high-profile individuals and organizations. 

- Delivering international industry knowledge, insights, 

thought leadership and best practices. 

- Providing learning opportunities in cooperation with 

renowned providers and Ivy-League universities. 

www.mepsan.com.tr 

www.convenience.org 

Openway Group 

We aim to provide payment industry leaders and 

ambitious startups with top ranked payment software 

solutions helping them embrace the digital era 

challenges. 

OpenWay Group has been ranked #1 in digital payment 

processing software by Gartner since 2009. Its 

WAY4 open platform is a market-leading solution for 

card and account issuing, merchant acquiring, transaction 

switching, omni-channel digital banking, digital 

wallets and tokenization, e-commerce gateway, loyalty, 

and fleet cards. WAY4 software solutions are used 

by tier-1 and start-up banks, processors, payment 

switching, telecom and oil companies in Europe, the 

Americas, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. 

www.openwaygroup.com 

PDI Software 

PDI helps retailers and petroleum wholesalers thrive 

through digital transformation and enterprise software 

that enables them to grow topline revenue, optimize 

operations and unify their business across the entire 

value chain. Over 1,500 customers in more than 

200,000 locations worldwide count on our leading 

ERP, logistics, fuel pricing and marketing cloud solutions 

to provide insights that increase volume, margin 

and customer loyalty. PDI owns and operates the Fuel 

Rewards® loyalty program that is consistently ranked 

as a top-performing fuel savings program year after 

year. For more than 35 years, our comprehensive 

suite of solutions and unmatched expertise have 

helped customers reimagine their enterprise and 

deliver exceptional customer 

experiences. 

www.pdisoftware.com 



Petrotec 

The Petrotec Group includes a number of private 

companies whose activity is focused on the 

production, marketing, distribution and technical 

support of equipment and management systems for 

the retail areas of the oil industry. Present on the 5 

continents and in more than 70 countries, the Group 

stands out for its continuous investment in innovation 

and development and transfer of sustainable 

technologies around the world. 

www.petrotec.com 

PWM 

PWM is market leader for electronic price displays, 

offering more than 40 years of industry experience. 

As a family-run business we combine tradition and 

innovation to help customers in more than 100 countries, 

in cooperation with suppliers and partner on six 

continents. All our products are made in Germany, by 

more than 100 employees in Bergneustadt – and a 

team of 20 in Houston/Texas. 

They design, develop and manufacture displays that 

are able to stand any weather, survive any climate 

and feature longevity and sustainability. We create 

visual anchors in a world that is dominated by Internet 

and virtual offerings. Thanks to PWM displays our 

customers stand out – from the competition, and in 

their surrounding. 

www.pwm.com 

Scheidt & Bachmann 

Each innovation takes courage – and someone to 

take that “first step forward” risk. At Scheidt & Bachmann, 

we have taken that first step forward many 

times – it’s in our corporate DNA. 

Scheidt & Bachmann has accompanied the market 

development, from the simple station through to the 

“mobility supermarket”, and has often been at the 

heart of pioneering work. Our extensive experience 

and technical competence is represented throughout 

our new product brand, SIQMA. With SIQMA, our 

goal is to make your fuel retail business even more 

successful through centrally managed cloud-based 

technologies and pioneering services. 

Techniche 

We help FMs to solve everyday challenges, and empower 

them to achieve their strategic goals. 

We do this by harnessing our industry expertise to 

help clients get the most from our powerful asset 

management technology. This generates value for our 

client stakeholders, while improving the environments 

in which people work, shop and live.We’re all about 

providing insight, solving problems and generating 

value for our clients. 

Urgent and Statseeker - both Techniche products - 

help organisations get the most from their assets and 

networks by effectively managing performance. 

www.scheidt-bachmann.de 

www.technichegroup.com 



The Retail Marketeers 

Christian Warning, founder and Managing Director of 

The Retail Marketeers, a Hamburg, Germany, based 

sales & marketing agency. He is a customer-focussed 

and commercially driven senior marketer with 

a proven track record of developing and delivering 

award winning convenience retail formats and marketing 

strategies. 

Thinxnet / ryd 

ryd is a product of ThinxNet GmbH, a fast growing 

IoT / FinTech start-up from Munich. Founded in 2014, 

ThinxNet puts the digital future on the road. ryd is a 

connected car platform focusing on ryd pay and ryd 

box. ryd pay is the largest cross-brand solution for 

mobile payments directly at the gas pump. 

Based on one of the widest personally global networks 

in the industry Christian has a proven track 

record in guiding market entry processes. He always 

strives to do better, to create value and to be innovative 

and creative as a senior executive consultant for 

numerous multinational clients in a very operational 

“hands-on” modus operandi to boost their sales and 

margins. 

the-retail-marketeers.business.site 

www.ryd.one 

Titan Cloud Software 

We provide industry-leading solutions for environmental 

compliance, advanced fuel analytics, and facility 

management, so that clients can effectively manage 

risk and run efficient, profitable businesses. The company 

was launched in 2012 and is headquartered 

near Nashville, Tennessee. 

Unicode Systems 

The UNICODE Group is currently provides oil & 

gas retail solutions in Central and Southeast Europe,Czech 

Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, 

Germany, Slovenia, Serbia and Poland. Together it 

means more than 3800 installations of POS, BOS and 

HOS systems. 

All of our products and services come from our more 

then 20 years experience in the oil and gas retail industry 

and from the trends in oil and gas retail sector, 

as we are 100% focused on it. 

www.titancloud.com 

www.unicodesys.cz 



Virta 

We at Virta Ltd provide leading-edge smart charging 

services for EV drivers and companies alike. Our 

vision is a clean, carbon-free future with silent EVs 

driving emission-free down the street, and our passion, 

as an industry forerunner, is to fulfill that future. 

We offer our customers the most comprehensive 

charging network in Finland, and our growing 

international charging network has more than 2500 

stations connected. We strive to constantly improve 

our services, and to push the EV industry forward. 

We specialize in comprehensive solutions and 

future-proof energy management tools, also working 

with stationary energy storages. 

See which fuel retailers will be in 

attendance from page 29. 

www.virta.global 


“DATA IS THE NEW OIL - IT 

LUBRICATES RETAIL” 


- Henry O. Armour, NACS 

President & CEO 

By Christian Warning 

The Retail Marketeers 

Marco Weber from ryd pay Europe 

Brent Puzak from Titan Cloud. 

This year forecourttech introduces panel sessions 

which I am delighted to moderate. These sessions are an 

opportunity to invite panelists from the delegate audience 

representing major and independent operators to discuss 

their views on emerging technologies and cast light on 

their forward thinking strategies to aid and abet technology 

providers in their own R&D programs. 

Marco Weber, Head of Business Development ryd pay 

Europe will join me for the panel session on Tuesday 12 

October. We will discuss three key areas of the ryd platform 

business model: 

1. The run-up of mobile payment and in-car payment in Europe. 

Including the expectations of ryd and their investors. 

2. Business model resellers as a technology-open ecosystem 

for the acquisition of B2B2C partners, mineral oil 

companies and in-car payment / OEMs. 

3. Further business models in preparation: alternative fuels 

(eFuels, hydrogen and electromobility), car-related services 

(wash, shop) for a holistic mobility platform in Europe. 

In addition to Marco, Malte Kendel, Development Lead - EV 

Charging at Tesla, will join the panel talk together with two 

additional forecourttech delegates. 

US industry veteran Brent Puzak, Vice President of Solutions 

Consulting with Titan Cloud will sit on the day two panel 

alongside a number of retailer delegates. After years serving 

as Circle K’s Director of North American Environmental 

Shared Services, Brent has recently changed the side of the 

desk. It was during his time with the global c-store chain that 

he realized how the data and information provided by 

Titan’s environmental compliance software could be critical 

in assisting other compliance professionals. 

Together the panel will discuss how to handle the challenge 

of dealing with increasingly large data volumes with 

far fewer staff and how they are replacing many manual 

processes to run their businesses more effectively. 

Time savings across the organization couldn’t have come 

at a better time, since industry professionals are now 

dealing with rapidly increasing volumes of forecourt data. 

Between data tracking customer visits, loyalty programs, 

sales data, and other information, there are more numbers 

than ever. Yet analyzing these large amounts of data is 

something that many industry professionals still struggle 

with, whether it’s for environmental compliance, facility 

maintenance, fuel inventory, or other operations. 

“There’s a significant amount of information being collected 

at a convenience store on an ongoing basis. What I see is 

that big data segment is increasing significantly – COVID 

was a huge driver in that. That’s overlapping into the compliance 

space, where the compliance personnel are really 

being asked to provide more information, to capture more 

information, to move faster,” Puzak said. 

Christian Warning is the founder and managing director 

of The Retail Marketeers. The Retail Marketeers, based in 

Hamburg, Germany, is an industry marketing and sales 

think tank with a proven track record of developing and 

delivering award winning convenience retail formats, 

forecourt marketing strategies and guiding market entry 

processes. 

pagetwentyseven 


FORECOURT 

OPERATORS 

Meet the forecourt operators attending 

forecourttech ‘21.


Emirates General Petroleum 

From the familiar smile you are used to seeing when 

you enter our Freshplus stores to the warm welcome 

at the petrol pump and the aroma of our very own Arabicca 

coffee, we are here to deliver the experience 

that you have come to expect, every single time. 

With 70 service stations located in Dubai and the 

Northern Emirates, Emirates General Petroleum has 

been serving the UAE for over 40 years. 

Fred Pfennings 

The family-run company Fred Pfennings GmbH & Co. 

KG can look back on a remarkable development in 

its 60-year history. The company founded by Fred 

and Anni in 1961 started with a manageable range of 

lubricants, today PM Pfennings is the third generation 

to supply a network of around 90 filling stations and, 

with its wide range of lubricants, is one of the most 

renowned mineral oil suppliers in the region. PM Pfennings 

employs a team of over 150 people and works 

closely with its petrol station partners. 

www.emarat.ae 

pfennings.net 

Herm 

Herm GmbH & Co. KG distributes and retails energy 

products. The Company offers petrol, diesel, natural 

gas, heating oil, wood pellets, and other fuels. Herm 

also provides petroleum filling stations, as well as vehicle 

refueling, washing, shopping, and waste disposal 

services. Herm serves its customers in Germany. 

Lekkerland - REWE Group 

Lekkerland the specialist for snacks on the go, advises 

and delivers to 85,800 sales points throughout 

Europe. The company has 5,000 employees and 

generated revenues of 13.1 billion euro in 2020. 

Lekkerland’s customers include petrol stations, 

kiosks, convenience stores, bakeries, food retailers 

and quick-service restaurants. Lekkerland offers 

its customers in four European countries innovative 

services, tailor-made logistics and a wide range of 

wholesale products. 

Lekkerland is part of the REWE Group. 

www.herm.net 

www.rewe-group.com 



Magn 

Magn was established in 1925, when Christian Holm 

Jacobsen began selling oil from Shell in the Faroe 

Islands. Christian Holm Jacobsen operated until 

1953, when the company was bought by Shell and 

named Shell Faroe Islands. Shell Faroe Islands was 

an independent entity within the Shell Group until 

2007, when investors bought the company out of the 

Shell group and named it Magn. Magn still handles 

the sales of all Shell lubricants in the Faroe Islands. 

Maxol Group 

The Maxol Group (www.maxol.ie) is Ireland’s leading 

family-owned oil company. Our business, which was 

established in Ireland in 1920 by William McMullan, 

markets a comprehensive range of oil and petroleum 

products to all sectors of the Irish Market, through 

our Retail, Lubricants and Fuelcard divisions and 

continues to grow today under the ownership of the 

McMullan family. Today, with our network of service 

stations and lubricants distributors, we have one of 

the strongest 32 county All-Ireland networks in the 

industry. 

www.magn.fo 

www.maxol.ie 

Motor Fuel Group 

MFG is the largest independent forecourt operator in 

the UK with around 900 stations operating under the 

BP, Shell, Esso, Texaco, JET and Murco fuel brands. 

Migrolino 

Migrolino AG is one of the leading providers in 

the Swiss convenience market with shops at train 

stations, petrol stations and other well-frequented 

locations. It is a 100 percent subsidiary of the Federation 

of Migros Cooperatives. migrolino is present at 

319 locations in Switzerland. Around half of the shops 

are run by migrolino AG franchise partners, be it as a 

standalone or connected to a petrol station. Migrolino 

operates the second half together with its strategic 

partners Migrol, Shell and SOCAR. These shops are 

all run together with a petrol station. 

www.motorfuelgroup.com 

www.migrolino.ch 



MOL Group 

MOL Group is an integrated, international oil and gas 

company, headquartered in Budapest, Hungary. It is 

active in over 30 countries with a dynamic international 

workforce of 26,000 people and a track record of 

more than 100 years in the industry. 

MOL Group currently owns a network of nearly 2,000 

service stations under six well-established brands 

across nine countries in Central Eastern Europe including: 

MOL, Slovnaft, INA, Tifon, Energopetrol and 

PapOi.. Our networks play a leading role on the Croatian, 

Hungarian, Slovakian and Bosnian retail markets 

and represent the premium segment in Czech Republic, 

Romania and Slovenia. Additionally, we also 

have a retail presence in Serbia and Montenegro. 

Oil Tankstellen 

OIL! is the future-oriented brand in the independent 

petrol station market. We stand for comprehensive 

car service. We combine high quality standards and 

environmentally conscious action. We are down to 

earth and always act on an equal footing with our 

petrol station partners. Our petrol stations are run with 

a medium-sized character. The close proximity to our 

customers distinguishes us and is an essential part of 

our corporate philosophy. 

www.molgroup.info 

www.oil-tankstellen.de 

Olerex 

Olerex is the largest fuel retailer in Estonia, serving 

customers at nearly 100 filling stations across Estonia. 

The company is based on 100% Estonian capital 

and already employs nearly 800 good Estonians. The 

profit earned by Olerex will remain in Estonia and will 

be largely reinvested for the benefit of a more comfortable 

future for all of us. 

Orlen Deutschland 

ORLEN Deutschland GmbH belongs to the Polish 

multi-energy group PKN ORLEN SA, which is the 

largest company in Central and Eastern Europe 

with an annual turnover of 19 billion euros in 2020. 

ORLEN Deutschland GmbH, based in Elmshorn near 

Hamburg, has been on the market since 2003 and 

now operates almost 600 star and ORLEN petrol 

stations. ORLEN Germany continues to expand and 

is continuously expanding its petrol station network. 

B. through the takeover of 56 filling stations from OMV 

Deutschland GmbH in Thuringia and Saxony. 

www.olerex.ee 

www.orlen-deutschland.de 



Petro Ofisi 

Extensive retail sales network offering service 

throughout Turkey. Wide dealer network covering all 

81 provinces and approximately 850 districts. Petrol 

Ofisi is the second private sector company of Turkey. 

Prio Energy 

PRIO is a 100% Portuguese company that was 

founded in 2006. Its main purpose is to distribute and 

sell liquid fuels and produce biofuels. We are proud 

of how far we have come since 2006 and that we are 

the only petrol station company on the Iberian 

Peninsula with triple QSE (Quality, Safety and the 

Environment) certification. 

It is thanks to the work and effort of everyone who 

works at PRIO that we can distribute high-quality fuels 

that meet the legally established technical 

requirements at the most competitive prices. 

www.petrolofisi.com.tr 

www.prio.pt 

Q1 Energie AG 

Q1 is an independent German medium-sized company. 

With around 200 locations, we are one of the five 

largest filling station operators in Germany - and our 

transparent and fair QStrom and QGas tariffs make 

Q1 an all-round supplier of energy. Quality first - this 

is the brand promise, which reflects our commitment 

to the best quality in products and service. Our quality 

is based on first-class products and a motivated 

team. 

Q8 

Kuwait Petroleum International, known by our trademark 

Q8, was established in 1983. Our main focus is 

to refine and market fuel, lubricants and other various 

petroleum derivatives globally. We are the international 

subsidiary of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, which 

combines elements of Kuwait oil sector under one 

corporate umbrella and is recognized as one of the 

world’s top ten energy conglomerates. 

www.q1.eu/de 

www.q8.com 



Rontec Roadside Retail 

With over 50 years of experience, growth and exceptional 

performance behind us, Rontec has built a 

market leading reputation in roadside retailing. 

One of the leading players in the UK forecourt industry, 

Rontec operates more than 250 petrol stations 

across England and Wales, under the Esso, BP, 

Texaco and Shell brands. 

Shell 

Shell is the world’s largest mobility retailer, by number 

of sites, with 45 thousand service stations operating 

in close to 80 countries. This is more sites than 

McDonalds or Zara, Carrefour, Starbucks and GAP 

put together. 

The company was formed in 2011 to acquire the 

assets of Total Oil UK and has since continued to 

acquire site packages from Esso, Co-Op and BP. 

www.rontec.com 

www.shell.com 

SK Fuels (Jet Brand UK) 

SK Fuels owns a number of Jet-branded sites 

throughout the north of England. 

Sprint Tank 

Sprint Tank GmbH, which is independent of 

international Group companies, has been successful 

in the German petrol station market for almost 30 

years. The owner-managed mineral oil company with 

a regional focus in Berlin, Brandenburg and Saxony 

operates 140 filling stations under the Sprint and GO 

brands together with its subsidiary HPV Hanseatic 

Petrol Vertriebs GmbH. 

www.go-sprint.de 



Team Energie 

The team petrol stations are represented in many 

federal states with an extensive network of complete 

and automated stations. Thanks to our good service 

and affordable offers, they are a proven contact point 

for car and truck drivers alike. 

Our complete stations offer much more than just diesel, 

petrol and LPG. They have modern washing facilities, 

restaurants and well-stocked shops that leave 

nothing to be desired, from car accessories to snacks 

and drinks to gifts, magazines and coffee-to-go. 

Tesla Germany 

Tesla was founded in 2003 by a group of engineers 

who wanted to prove that people didn’t need to compromise 

to drive electric – that electric vehicles can 

be better, quicker and more fun to drive than gasoline 

cars. Today, Tesla builds not only all-electric vehicles 

but also infinitely scalable clean energy generation 

and storage products. Tesla believes the faster the 

world stops relying on fossil fuels and moves towards 

a zero-emission future, the better. 

www.team.de 

www.tesla.com 

Viada LT 

VIADA is a network of gas stations connecting as 

many as 127 gas stations in Lithuania and 97 gas 

stations in Latvia, representing the VIADA brand and 

carrying out both retail and wholesale fuel trade. 

Zen Petroleum 

ZEN is a solely owned Ghanaian Oil Marketing 

Company (OMC) that within eight years has 

established itself as the market leader in supplying 

Fuel and Lubricants to mines in Ghana, as well as an 

expanding footprint in the West African region, and a 

growing retail network in Ghana. 

ZEN has consistently proven to be a reliable, safe 

and valuable partner in supplying high quality hydro 

carbon products to the industrial and retail sectors in 

Ghana and West Africa. 

www.viada.lt 

www.zenpetroleum.com 



Supplier news & insights 

pagethirtysix 

Origo Africa, a leading African facilities maintenance 

company, has announced a reseller 

agreement with global technology company, 

Techniche. Origo Africa will market, sell, and 

distribute Techniche cloud-based computerised 

maintenance management software 

(CMMS) and associated professional services 

to fuel retailers and convenience store 

operators in the South African Development 

Community (SADC) member states under an 

exclusive regional reseller agreement. 

GripHero, the maker of the world’s only single-item 

release static-safe hand-protection 

dispenser, is drawing attention to the importance 

of protecting the health and wellbeing 

of EV customers who are prone to picking 

up contaminants and illness from recharging 

point handles. The campaign follows research 

which reveals that charging points are 

teaming with germs that have been shown to 

be transferable to others seven times before 

leaving the skin. 

ISTOBAL USA will attend NACS SHOW 

Chicago from 6th to 8th of October to consolidate 

its growth in the petroleum and convenience 

store sector with its transformable 

rollover ISTOBAL FLEX5. So far this year, 

deployments of this model increased by 28% 

over 2020 thanks to its flexibility to meet car 

wash needs, present and future, without significant 

additional investment. At booth 3337, 

ISTOBAL USA will show visitors the reasons 

why the FLEX5 is the most popular ISTOBAL 

technology in the US in service stations, professional 

retail car washes and C-Stores alike. 

In the 5-brush configuration, the machine is 

particularly preferred due to its speed and 

wash quality. 

PDI, a global provider of leading enterprise 

management software for the convenience 

retail and petroleum wholesale industries, 

has signed a definitive agreement to acquire 

Orbis Technologies Ltd (Orbis Tech), a global 

provider of cloud-based point of sale (POS), 

back-office, and home-office business solutions. 

The acquisition enhances PDI’s international 

software offerings with a seamless POS, 

back-office, and home-office cloud platform 

that will help businesses simplify complex instore 

and forecourt operations. 



bp ventures is investing €10 million in Europe’s 

leading in-car digital payments provider, 

ryd. The company offers a convenient single 

digital payment solution for drivers, for services 

such as fuel purchases, electric vehicle 

(EV) charging and car washing, via its app or 

through integration with smart car systems. 

bp’s investment will help ryd strengthen its 

market-leading position, grow into new international 

markets, and further build its offering. Its 

ecosystem already covers a wide range of car 

brands, apps and payment networks and is in 

use across several European markets. 

Dover Fueling Solutions (DFS), has announced 

the launch of its DFS Fusion Automation 

Server Version 3. This model builds 

on the success of its predecessor but runs 

on more advanced technology used in many 

other new DFS products and solutions, such 

as the DFS Anthem UX user experience 

platform and DFS Edge – which means it is 

readily enabled for digital transformation for 

the retail fueling industry through DFS’ new 

connected solutions platform, DFS DX. 

pagethirtyseven 

Mepsan has completed the delivery of Smartline 

C and Smartline L Combo Duo dispensers 

to North Macedonia. Smartline series 

dispensers combine advanced technology 

and stylish design and come with a comprehensive 

safety package. Setting out with the 

aim of mastering the design language and 

creating a complete product matrix, Mepsan 

works in a multi-disciplinary way to meet 

the needs and expectations of the industry. 

Mepsan is continuing to develop its station 

network thanks to the importance it attaches 

to both design and functionality. 

ACI Worldwide, a leading global provider of 

real-time electronic payment and banking 

solutions, has been recognized by Juniper 

Research, winning three awards for innovation 

in payments and retail at its Future 

Digital Awards 2021 Fintech & Payments. 

ACI Secure eCommerce received the highest 

accolade—a Platinum Award—in the category 

“Payments Innovation of the Year” for its 

merchant payments gateway and integrated 

multilayered fraud prevention. 


SUPPORTING 

FORECOURT 

OPERATIONS 

Fully managed network solutions for Fuel Convenience 

Service Stations to support: 

. Secure Payments 

. GDPR Compliant Guest Wifi 

. CCTV and Security Systems 

. Secure 3rd party connectivity for inventory monitoring, automated 

odering of fuel and food, for compliance purposes, and to support 

on-site brand concessions and vendors. 

www.evolveodm.co.uk 

+44 (0) 333 207 0364 

support@evolveodm.co.uk


IFSF ANNOUNCES 

VIRTUAL CONFERENCE 

Melanie Lane 

NewMotion 

Martina Weimert 

European Payment Initiative 

Rushad Chinoy 

Accenture 

Máté Tilk 

MOL Group 

IFSF is excited to announce its 2021 Annual Conference, 

which will be taking place virtually from 8-10 November 2021. 

Following on from our hugely successful virtual conference 

in 2020 and with so many on-going uncertainties around 

travel, we have taken the difficult decision to delay welcoming 

members and partners face-to-face in the beautiful city 

of Prague, for a further year. 

With escalating rates of change in all aspects of life, and with 

particular focus on our fuel retailing industry, we have chosen 

to focus this year’s event on the theme of Transformation. 

Our conference theme of Transformation reflects the escalating 

rates of change in all aspects of our lives, particularly 

with the intense focus on our fuel retailing industry. We 

have an exciting line up of speakers from all areas of our 

industry: 

• Melanie Lane - NewMotion 

• Martina Weimert - European Payment Initiative 

• Rushad Chinoy - Accenture 

• Máté Tilk - MOL Group 

The API research and development at the heart of IFSF’s 

work over the last four years will again command a share 

of the schedule, with further updates on our joint work with 

Conexxus in developing a global set of APIs. We look forward 

to insightful discussions on where our industry should 

focus its efforts and resources in this new decade. 

The virtual conference, spanning three days, will also allow 

members and interested parties to network virtually. 

Heather Price, IFSF Chair said: “We at IFSF are very disappointed 

to not be able to welcome friends and colleagues 

face-to-face this year again. The decade of the 2020s has 

not got off to the most auspicious of starts, but as with 

any major crisis, COVID-19 has brought unprecedented 

change to the way our customers want to do things, 

providing us all with great opportunities to enhance our 

offering. We are however excited to discuss and debate 

on these changes and challenges with our members and 

peers virtually in November, and look forward to hosting an 

exciting programme full of forward-thinking and engaging 

speakers. “ 


. 

See you at 

forecourttech ‘21 

Not attending forecourttech ‘21? 

Search for forecourttech on LinkedIn for all the latest 

event updates.

forecourttech October '21

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?