How Garvin Oil Does Biodiesel

/// Guest post by contributor Jon Scharingson, Renewable Energy Group

Garvin Oil began in 1957 in Wagner, S.C. as a small family-owned petroleum jobber. As more family members took a stake in the fuel company, the Kent’s Korner brand was established to serve the convenience store market. In the 1980s and 1990s, the Kent’s Korner brand grew. Store numbers doubled and the business is now made up of 21 stores — 19 convenience stores and two travel centers.

“We began selling to other petroleum marketers and fleets of trucks. From there the business has just kind of grown over time and expanded into different areas; most notably biodiesel,” says Chad Ingram, president and CEO of Garvin Oil and the Kent’s Korner chain based out of Wagner, South Carolina.

According to Ingram, the decision to add biodiesel to the company profile was to provide a competitive advantage. With a number of new businesses entering the marketplace, the oil industry was becoming convoluted and smaller companies like Kent’s Korner were facing threats from larger opponents. Combined with the rising price of foreign oil and traditional diesel Ingram knew he needed to find a way to differentiate.

Ingram estimates between 50,000 and 80,000 diesel trucks fill their tanks with a biodiesel blend from Kent’s Korner annually.

“We ramp biodiesel usage up slowly. We look at a site and we want it B20, so we’ll go B3, then move up to B4 and B6, and progressively go up from there. This gives us some time to monitor the tank and make sure it is clean. After about a month, we will have that location all B20,” Ingram said.

Today, all Kent’s Korner locations offer B20.

Ingram also believes the market keeps becoming more accepting when people see the profitability of B5 and B20 blends. The higher the price of oil, the higher the price of diesel and the more sense biodiesel makes.

Chad Ingram saw the economic benefits at B1, and again at B3, B5 and now up to B20. They prefer to maximize the blend and sell B20. The company has installed above-ground frac tanks for biodiesel storage and use splash blending.

Customer education was also a challenge that the Kent’s Korner team met head-on. The team has taken steps to reassure all their customers that they use top-quality biodiesel and informed them about the benefits of biodiesel blends. Ingram buys only BQ-9000^® certified biodiesel.

“We really took the tack that we wanted our customers to be able to believe in our product, so we wanted them to know exactly what they’re getting at all times. We wanted to be forthright about everything, so when we went to B10, we let people know in advance, and the same when we moved into B20. We talked to customers at travel centers, fleet managers and maintenance guys to make sure everybody knew what we were doing,” Ingram says.

“It improves air quality and it makes sense economically. We are just a drop in the bucket, but we thought we could make a difference, and I think we have.”

/// Read more guest posts on biodiesel posts here. 

{Guest Post} Guest post provided by NATSO Chairman's Circle member Jon Scharingson, Renewable Energy Group. Renewable Energy Group^® is a leading North American biodiesel producer with a nationwide distribution and logistics system. With more than 210 million gallons of owned/operated annual production capacity at biorefineries across the country, REG is a proven biodiesel partner in the distillate marketplace. Learn more about Renewable Energy Group.

The opinions and advice given by guest post contributors are not necessarily those of NATSO Inc. The posts should not be considered legal advice. Qualified professionals should be sought regarding advice and questions specific to your circumstances.