Yaadman revs up gas station rivalry with $800m plans

Y aadman Petroleum is set to enter the fiercely competitive service station market in the Corporate Area, opening a new service station at the Pechon Street and Water Lane intersection in downtown Kingston as part of plans to spend more than approximately $800 million expanding the business. The company has invested $100 million in the Kingston development. The opening of the Pechon Street facility will bring to only two, the number of service stations operated under the Yaadman brand. The other is in Junction, St. Elizabeth. Yaadman Petroleum, which started business in 2018, operates four other gas stations that are Texaco-branded. Those are located at Central Village in St. Catherine, Priory in St. Ann, George’s Plain in Westmoreland and Knockpatrick in Manchester.

Yaadman is operated by the husband and wife team of Miguel and Tanya Smith. Miguel said Yaadman has an aggressive expansion programme planned for the next 18 months that will see total investments in the region of $800 million. Going forward, he told the Financial Gleane that all new service stations to be opened by the company will carry the Yaadman imprimatur. At the same time, he said, the company is inviting petroleum dealers to partner with Yaadman and operate in a franchising arrangement with the Jamaican company.

As part of the other development plans, Yaadman Petroleum is said to have recently secured authorisation from the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) to go ahead with constructing a new service station at Big Bridge, near Egypt in Westmoreland. That investment will be in the region of $145 million, according to Smith.

The Big Bridge area was previously used for growing rice. Locals also use the area to beach fishing boats. Smith explained that the site for the proposed service station has been dumped to deal with any flooding threat. Storage tanks and pumps, he said, will also be above ground. He added that the equipment to construct the station is already purchased, but nearby roadworks caused delays for the project.

“We had some delays because of the road improvement that in ongoing. As a result, we had to adjust our plans to accommodate the changes,” Smith said.

The station is planned to include a convenience store.

Smith disclosed that he owns land on either side of the Cabarita River in the area and also has plans to expand the project later to include a tourist rest stop. This, he pointed out, would be capitalising on the fact that in the past the area served as a popular spot for fresh water shrimp and land crabs.

Other investment plans by the company include the resubmission of development plans for a gas station and commercial centre to be built at Christian Pen on the outskirts of Portmore on land measuring about seven acres that Smith said the company bought for $180 million.

Sometime ago, NEPA denied permission for Yaadman to construct what would have been one of the largest petrol stations in Jamaica, complete with a shopping plaza in a development pan that was originally costed at about $800 million. The National Works Agency is said to have objected to the proposed location indicating that it intended to build an overpass in the area.

Now, Yaadman has rescoped the project for a smaller $550 million development and Smith said the new plans are ready for approval submission. Financing is being provided by First Global Bank, the Yaadman principal said.

“It’s the same property, but not as large as before. The authorities will be using about four acres for the overpass so the architects are working with the three and a half acres left to set up a smaller project,” Smith said, adding that if all goes to plan, then work should start at that location by May 2023.

neville.graham@gleanerjm.com