Joe Deck
In business since the early 1990s, Allied Petroleum is now very well known on New Zealand’s highways, not only through their own fleet, but through ongoing investment in a 24/7 fuel stop network that spans the length of the country.
Inside this article
Challenge
Allied Petroleum wanted to expand their existing fuel stop in Invercargill NZ to include 91 and 95 grade petrol. The existing site only had diesel on sale. The main challenge was a very costly proposal to install underground tanks in an inner-city industrial site with poor ground conditions.
Petrotec Services was engaged by Allied Petroleum to design the entire site. It was to remain as unmanned, however needed to offer the additional petrol grades with enough volume to be viable. It also had to meet Allied’s strict budget as part of the wider case.
Solution
Petrotec Services approached Fuelchief to collaborate on an above-ground tank solution that could achieve several aims:
- Hold 3 grades of fuel in the same tank at once
- Meet the tight separation and flammable/combustible zone regulations
- A smart looking result
The biggest model of the Supervault iTank (a 4-hour fire-rated & multi-hazard tested tank) was chosen for the solution, and a great partnership was formed.
Outcome
The end result pulled together a solution that met all of the 3 points above, and some more. The largest 88,000L model was designed in 3 compartments to carry diesel, 91 and 95 unleaded. The pipework was tucked under a gantry that also served as a walkway with no handrails – contractors use a smart harness and sliding fall arrest system. This feature is to keep the profile low.
The certification of the Supervault directly complies with the SwRI 95-03 requirements in Worksafe NZ law, and hence is able to halve the separation distance required to the boundary in this case. The tank fitted onsite perfectly.
