BP opens its first branded gas station in Shandong

British energy company BP opened its first branded station in Shandong, East China on Tuesday through its new joint venture partnership with private oil refinery Shandong Dongming Petrochemical Group. This marks the start of a plan to add 1,000 new sites across China over the next five years.

Opened in the Huaiyin district of Jinan city, the new site also will offer made-to-order Wild Bean Coffee delivered to the car, free WIFI and all the benefits linked to a multi-partner loyalty program with China Resources Networks, which covers over 6,000 merchants across the country, the company said.

"We want to offer our Chinese customers a friendly and welcoming experience," said Hanna Hofer, president of BP China Retail. "In this site, we are testing a new design and service offer, reflecting the uniqueness of the fast-changing retail environment and customer needs in China."

BP said earlier that it plans to more than double its gas stations in China by adding 1,000 more in the next five years, against the backdrop of China lifting the 30-site limit on international fuel retailers.

Half of the new sites will be in Shandong, Central China's Henan and North China's Hebei provinces, a result of its joint venture with Dongming Petrochemical, which was formed last February.

The new measures would create a more open market that will attract more investment, which would eventually benefit consumers, according to Hofer.

BP said it is committed to a low carbon future, aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in its operations, improving its products and services to help customers lower their emissions, and to create new low carbon businesses.

This new location will be BP's first retail site in China offering fast charging for electric vehicles and participating in BP's Target Neutral program to deliver a carbon-neutral operation.

"China is an important market in our downstream growth strategy; this marks the first BP site with our full offer, demonstrating our continued intent to provide charging solutions, fuels, and a high quality retail offer to our consumers," said Tufan Erginbilgic, chief executive, BP Downstream.