UPDATE – Engebret and Campbell’s fillling stations have now cut their fuel prices by 3p per litre. Other reports of price movement gratefully received.
An island filling station stunned and delighted locals by suddenly slashing the price of petrol and diesel by 9p per litre.
Proprietor Gordon Maclennan, who runs Gordon Diesel Services Ltd at Back, would only say he had changed his fuel supplier and was proud to be able to pass on the savings to islanders.
Callum Ian examines Gordon’s prices
There are already claims by local business figures that a fuel price war could be about to begin. One said: “The other filling stations will fear losing trade as motorists, already fed up of the ongoing rip-off, head to Back to fill up.”
Although he was not prepared to go into detail about what had led up to the price cut, Gordon confirmed his filling station, six miles out of Stornoway, was now selling unleaded petrol at 139.9p per litre and diesel at 143.9p.
Local fuel price campaigners Fair Fuel Solutions hailed the unexpected price cut as a major development in their fight to cut the price difference between island pumps and ones in mainland towns and cities.
Petrol is currently about 14p a litre more expensive in Stornoway than at comparable independent outlets in Inverness and Dingwall.
FFS has already made a submission to the Office of Fair Trading asking for an urgent investigation into alleged “profiteering” by the dominant distributor, Scottish Fuels, part of the Irish-based DCC oil giant.
After filling up at Gordon Diesel Services, Callum Ian Macmillan, spokesman for FFS, said he was delighted at the price he was charged.
“Only last week, Scottish Fuels were showing how much they cared for the islands by imposing wartime-style fuel rationing in the Uists. This week, other companies and individuals with a sense of responsibility for these islands are showing how customer care should really be done. This is fantastic,” he said.
He called on all islanders to support Mr Maclennan’s company.
Nice one, my car is on the red, a fill in Back will save me over £7 over the pump price in town! Lets all support Gordon Diesels for giving us a fair fuel price!
Nice one Gordon . I’d better get there early. There will be queues I bet after people read this.
I know GB Oils or scottish fuels have most of the filling stations tied into long term contracts for fuel supply but surely now the filling stations in Uist should be allowed out of these contracts and free to switch suppliers as GB Oils havent stuck to their side of the contracts of keeping them in supply of fuel but instead they are causing them all to run out of fuel & am sure the outlets have very many unhappy customers. Well done Gordon, Councillor Campbell will be trying to block it since he will lose alot of trade.
there are two councillors to watch closely – one of them apparently still on the scottish fuel payroll . the competition commission is also being kept informed .
Excellent news. From now on I’ll be going “Back to Back”.
i hear from my friends in back that a highland fuels tanker was at his shop yesteday – yes .
Brilliant! Well done Gordon
Well done Gordon, you’ve done us proud!
I think Callum Iain and his FFS team have done wonders to keep this issue on the boil and moving towards a permanent solution, unlike the MP, MSP and most of our other elected councillors, with the exception of David Blaney. How about FFS organising a public meeting down here, say in Balivanich, so that we can get our local problem with Scottish Fuels resolved? You could even invite our local chocolate teapots, the MP and MSP, to attend to explain their lack of action to resolve this emergency.
PS, I also meant to congratulate your man Gordon , maybe when we eventually get fuel down here some of our local suppliers will follow his excellent example.
Monkey I have never read so much Labour Party rubbish in all my life. The people you talk about hi-jacked a very successful none political campaign and turned it into another Labour Party blunder. I take it the public meeting you refer to is for Labour people. All the Labour Party have done is split the community again by trying to steal any credit that is going. The young woman who is non-political was doing a good job with this has been pushed aside by the Labour Party. We would have seen more progress had it been left with her.
DC, where have you been the last few weeks, have you had a torrid time, things not working out as you expected? I would have thought even you, with all your evident hang ups, would have welcomed this break through by Callum Iain and the FFS campaign. I sincerely hope FFS can keep on showing up the inadequacies of the MP and MSP, who have done exactly nothing to help us. Shame on you DC Subsidee.
Roll on the Uist public meeting!
Thank you monkey for your special words lunacy, things are not the same without you. We all need a clown to amuse us and you truly fit the bill. What is your view of Lamont’s mad hour yesterday.
Good for you Gordon ! wish there was a lot more like you Ann & Ewen Skye.
FFS dont seem to be doing that much either apart from talk about it in videos on this blog, there’s no evidence to show any progress by them getting us cheaper fuel. They cant take any credit for Gordon managing to get out of his contract with Scottish Fuels & get it cheaper else where. That’s Gordon & his teams own good work.
Well said James Macdonald. It is not as if Gordon has a large organisation and can easily offset any losses. Obviously he has done his sums and done the right thing by everybody. It reflects poorly on our greedy council leader who is only interested in himself. I’m quite sure that Callum iain Macmillan won’t want to take the credit for what Gordon Diesel has done.
DC/Jams/Subsidee, it seems to me that Callum Iain, FFS and Gordon ( and let’s not forget Barvas who led the way), have suceeded where everyone else failed. The dam has been breached, and the OFT must surely now take long overdue action. And let us not forget that Danny Alexander cut the cost by 5p per litre in April, only to see it disappear a few days later.
Now can we have a public meeting in Uist to resolve our fuel difficulties, I have heard rumours locally that it is to be held next Tuesday in Balivanich.
Monkey I fail to understand your logic that a public meeting will resolve your fuel difficulties. We’ve had a number of public meetings and have made little progress. I’m not sure you’ll get the truth about the storage tanks and I most certainly don’t believe you’ll make any progress on pricing. If you can get the retailers and distributor in the same room you might understand who is ripping us off. Somehow I don’t think you will get them in the same room.
Monkey for someone living on Barra you have a very sound knowledge of what is currently happening on Lewis, things which have not been publicised.
I once asked Engies why, when a decrease in the cost of fuel was announced, we didn’t see the decrease here until some time later. The reply was that they had to get rid of the old stock first. Yet strangely the same “old stock” never had to be sold off before an increase in price was implemented!
So it’s interesting how he can afford to drop the price by 3p a litre as a reaction to Gordon’s but wouldn’t take a unilateral decision to do so!!
Greed methinks!
the Barvas Filling Station have been using Highland Fuels for quite a while but there fuel is only 1p cheaper than Stornoway. Why are they not passing on the price difference, GREED methinks
Whatever can you mean DC/Junkee/Subsidee, whyever should someone living in Barra not have a sound knowledge of what happens on other islands? We islanders do talk to each other you know, through well established kinship social networks which you can only dream about. Back(!) to the topic, I wish I could run up to fill my tank at Gordon Filling Station, or anywhere else South of Harris for that matter. I am still waiting for any kind of coherent response or action from the MP or MSP to resolve our difficulty, they seem to have gone to ground altogether. A shocking display of indifference to their electorate. I will keep you posted on developments with the public meeting.
Tina & Iain
Why don’t you take a 10 percent reduction in your wages, GREED methinks!!!
Sceptical, there is a fair difference between people’s wages and the practice of profiteering and exploitation.
My sentiments exactly Guga!
Still no word from the MP or MSP about the Uist fuel crisis, although I did see a list MSP, good for him,has raised the issue in the wee parliament. I have been thinking about this, obviously, for the last few days- will I have enough fuel for work, will I have diesel for harvest work and so on- and I realised that Callum Iain and FFS have been the first campaign in the islands that ever achieved a fuel price reduction! All the other efforts over the years failed, including one started not far from here, prior to an election, spearheaded by Am Paipear, with much noddying of heads but no effective action, from the MP and MSP! The council transportation dept. have also been a sad joke. I really wish FFS would bring their campaign down here, and I hope efforts to organise a public meeting so that people can express their anger at the current situation will continue over the weekend.
My point is that without the facts of what the wholesale price is in relation to the retail price, you are making assumptions that the retailer is being Greedy.
I am of the opinion that it is the Wholesaler who is responsible for the retail price.
There is also a culture in the Islands that people object to local businesses making a decent profit .
There is no doubt that the local garages are screwing drivers. The dope calling himself monkey subsidy wants everbody else to everything for him. Why does e not become ffs rep on Barra?
A fortnight is a long time they say. Been on the Mainland the last two weeks. When I left, with about 55 miles worth in the tank and 3 tesco fuel vouchers in my pocket, unleaded was 148.9 in Sty. Made it to Tesco in Inverness 132.9 (minus another 5p per litre), filled the tank for less than £60! Normally Mid £70′s. Anyway, arrived back hearing rumours about Back Filling Station, and immediately noticed Sty price had dropped to 145.9 and there had been no change on the Mainland!!!
So there you have it – what a bit of competition can do – and proof, as if needed any, that Scottish fuels (and continue to) ripped Islanders off.
So Uncle Sam if you have indeed only ever made 2p a litre margin, how and why are you now making a 1p a litre loss – or are you?? As if!
It will be interesting to see if the price at Back is long lasting and how it is being achieved. If it is indeed due to competiton long may it last.
The Tesco petition is still active and hopefully will still attract more signatures. Now I am back I will try to promote it more.
I do hope the latest “rationing to priority customers” is not a GB ploy to leave Gordon with no supplies until some legal challenge is put in place to bring him back in line Or am I too much the synic?
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