4pm, Thursday 24 February, 2011.

BP Oil New Zealand advises that its Lyttelton oil terminal has now re-opened following a thorough safety inspection.

BP NZ Managing Director Mike McGuinness said opening the terminal will significantly assist BP to replenish its stocks in the Canterbury region, and to ensure fuel supply over the coming weeks.

“We have ample stocks in Lyttelton and Timaru. Our task now is to safely transport the fuel to our sites throughout Canterbury. The fuel in our terminal will also be accessed by the industry as we work together to co-ordinate fuel supply in the region.

“Our operational teams have been working closely with structural engineers to get all of our facilities operational again as soon as possible. The team have worked incredibly hard to achieve this and it is a great credit to them.

“We will also continue to truck supplies from Timaru in an effort to replenish stocks as fast as possible. A ship was diverted to Timaru and fuel started off-loading late last night. Trucks were scheduled to be at the terminal to ensure deliveries would be undertaken as fast as possible. This process will continue.

"Further ships are expected in the near future so we are confident that fuel supplies to the region should not be disrupted if motorists do not put undue pressure on the system.

“We stress that there is enough fuel in the region and we urge people to only buy what they need. It will take a few days to replenish stocks at retail and Truck Stop sites. We ask that people only buy what they need to avoid placing unnecessary pressure on the system which may cause short-term outages at sites.

“Our staff and suppliers have done an amazing job under difficult circumstances. Not only have they managed to get most sites operational, the opening of the terminal again is a very important step forwards.

“We thank our staff who have returned to work. It has been a traumatic experience and their willingness to lend a hand to help others is heart-warming. Yesterday saw a high demand for fuel and convenience products which kept staff very busy. We appreciate that there have been some delays in serving customers, and we continue to do all we can to minimise delays,” he said.

The following BP stores have reopened and are trading. (This is subject to change without notice given the changeable situation following the quake.)

• Woodend Service Station
• BP 2go Halswell
• BP Connect Rolleston
• BP Connect Bush Inn
• BP Connect Fendalton
• BP 2go Sockburn
• BP Papanui
• BP Westburn
• Sawyers Arms BP
• BP2go Ashburton – only open to Emergency Services at present
• BP 2go West Melton - only open to Emergency Services at present

ENDS

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