Authorities last week ordered local oil retailers to raise their refined oil reserves proportion to 1.5% by Mar 31, up from the current 1%, reports the Bangkok Post.
Pithak Ratchakitprakarn, president and chief executive of PTG, confirmed the company holds refined oil sourced from six refineries. The oil storage volume will rise to 15 million litres to meet the 1.5% requirement, and could be doubled to 30mn litres should reserves be raised to 3%, he said.
Rangsun Puangprang, executive vice-president, said refineries already provide storage services to PTG, and scaling up to 3% would not present operational difficulties.
Reserve purchases are based on Singapore’s reference price, which has surged above US$120 per barrel, compared with less than $100 per barrel during the same period last year.
Despite the higher costs, PTG expressed confidence the financial impact would be manageable, citing expectations the conflict between the US-Israel alliance and Iran will ease, with military activity likely confined to areas near the Strait of Hormuz.
US President Donald Trump told Axios, the US-based digital news agency, in a phone interview on Mar 11 that the war with Iran would end soon, claiming there was "practically nothing left to target".
PTG acknowledged last week the cost of acquiring additional reserves poses challenges for oil retailers already grappling with fierce competition and thin profit margins.
To strengthen its retail business, PTG unveiled a strategy to expand its customer loyalty programme. The company wants to grow membership of its Max Card, which offers discounts on many products, notably fuel and coffee at its Pun Thai outlets.
Cardholders earn privileges by tapping their cards at touchpoints across PTG’s network.
There are 6,126 touchpoints nationwide, and PTG plans to increase the figure to more than 7,000 by year-end.
The Max Card already boasts more than 25mn members linked to 13 affiliated brands spanning both oil and non-oil segments.
Poramate Sanguanchokewanich, chief strategy and transformation officer, said the expansion of touchpoints is expected to drive customer growth.
He said margins from non-oil businesses are projected to rise to 45% this year, up from an average of 40% in 2025, underscoring PTG’s push to diversify revenue streams beyond fuel sales.