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NEWS ‘RIGHT PERSON AT RIGHT TIME’ TO LEAD AMPOL Ampol will be well positioned post COVID-19 to deliver value, leveraging its market-leading assets and strong balance sheet, says the company’s newly appointed Managing Director and CEO. Ampol has appointed its former chief financial officer and interim CEO, Matthew Halliday, as Managing Director and CEO. “The board believes it’s the right time to make this permanent appointment, having formed a view that Matthew is the right person to lead Ampol into the future,” Ampol Chair Steven Gregg said. “Matthew has done an outstanding job as interim CEO through a period of unprecedented disruption and demand destruction following the onset of COVID-19, taking strong action to protect our assets and market-leading position, optimise cashflows and ensure the continued safe and reliable operation of our business for employees and customers. “He’s an experienced executive who is highly respected by the market and by his colleagues. I’m confident that his skills, knowledge of the business and track record over the last year position him well to succeed.” Mr Halliday joined Ampol in April 2019 as chief financial officer and was appointed interim CEO with effect from 2 March 2020. According to Ampol, Mr Halliday brings significant ASX- listed company experience in Australia and overseas. Before joining Ampol, he spent 20 years with Rio Tinto, holding senior finance and commercial roles across several divisions and geographies. “It is an honour to be appointed to lead this great Australian company on a permanent basis,” Mr Halliday said. “When we emerge from COVID-19, we will be well positioned to leverage our market-leading assets and strong balance sheet to continue the successful execution of our strategy and find new opportunities to deliver value to shareholders. “It’s an exciting time for our company as we continue the revitalisation of the Ampol brand. Ampol is a proudly independent Australian company and we’re committed to playing a leading part in our country’s future. “We’ll remain focused on operating safely, delivering for customers and being a positive contributor in our local communities.” APRIL PETROL PRICES REACHED RECORD LOWS A global crude oil surplus and COVID-19 restrictions on travel and economic activity led to the lowest monthly average petrol prices on record during April 2020 in Australia’s five largest cities. The ACCC’s latest petrol monitoring report showed the monthly average retail price for petrol was 102.6 cents per litre (cpl) in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth. This is the lowest inflation-adjusted monthly price recorded since comprehensive retail prices began being collected in May 1991. On 23 April, seven-day rolling average prices fell below $1 per litre for the first time since March 2005 and hit a low of 92.4cpl six days later. Prices then increased to 108.4cpl by the end of May following increases in international crude oil and refined petrol prices. “The sharp fall in petrol prices in the first few months of the year was good news for most Australian motorists,” ACCC Chair Rod Sims said. Significant reductions in crude oil prices were said to be influenced by news coming out of China about the COVID-19 outbreak. This was compounded in early March by the breakdown of the agreement to cut crude oil production by the OPEC cartel and other producers, including Russia. Changes in international refined petrol prices, says the ACCC, usually take a couple of weeks to be reflected in retail petrol prices in the larger capital cities, and longer in the smaller capital cities and in regional locations. Due to a substantial reduction in demand for petrol in Australia associated with COVID-19 restrictions, the ACCC says it took longer than normal for prices to come down because it took retailers longer to turn over existing volume bought at a higher price. In April, petrol sales volumes across Australia were 43 per cent lower compared with monthly average sales in calendar year 2019. Between January and the end of May 2020, weekly average retail petrol prices decreased by at least 40cpl in almost half of the regional locations covered during this period of increased ACCC fuel monitoring. Prices in some regional locations, however, were slower to fall and remained high in a number of towns. “Average prices in Cloncurry, Mount Isa, Emerald, Cunnamulla and Forbes only fell by around 20cpl or less between January and May and haven’t changed much since then,” Mr Sims said. “Retailers should share the savings from lower global oil prices with drivers. Excessive pricing that harms local communities, while not illegal, has been called out by the ACCC and community leaders.” 4 CONVENIENCE WORLD JUL/AUG, 2020