La Gas, which started providing Pemex’s first taste of competition last year, is expanding rapidly.
After opening in June 2016 with two franchises, one in Campeche and another in Merida, La Gas now has 34 service stations in four states: Campeche, Quintana Roo, Tabasco and Yucatán.
Now the company has plans to expand to even more states, said Emilio Loret de Mola Gómory, chairman of the board of directors and general manager of Grupo Lodemo,
“… Orderly growth of the franchise must be from Yucatán to the heart of the country,” said Loret de Mola, predicting 200 stations before the end of 2020.
“We think that by then — within three years — we can reach Veracruz, Mexico State and also Chiapas, in the first stage.”
The founding partner of La Gas said they expect to end the year with 50 service stations, 16 more than last year. Some stations are converted Pemex stations, while others are built from the ground up.
“In all of them, we are incorporating multiple services such as convenience stores, restaurants and promoting all electronic means of payment,” he said, in Spanish, in a press conference. “In fact, by incorporating the GoMart brand convenience stores we have truly succeeded in creating a synergy between convenience stores and customers. Currently, about 20 percent of customers who come to our service stations make transactions at convenience stores.”
Customers will also be able to pay their utility bills, which Loret de Mola called a growing trend for service stations.
Le Gas is also building a storage terminal in Progreso, which will start operating in 2018 with capacity of 450,000 barrels.
Although a competing service station chain, Le Gas’ gas is supplied mainly by Pemex.
