Simons Petroleum, a national marketer of petroleum products to the trucking industry, announced today, Aug. 7, a new comprehensive fuel purchasing program. Available through Simons’ Pathway Network of truckstops, the SuperKnockOut program is set up to reduce losses from nonrecoverable fuel surcharges and provide protection against fuel price spikes.
“Fuel price volatility is unprecedented today,” says Brad Simons, senior vice president of Oklahoma City-based Simons Petroleum and president of its Pathway Network. “By capping costs and providing the ability to follow the market down if prices decline, the Super KnockOut program provides protection from daily cost increases not covered by fuel surcharges. The purpose of the cost bands is to stabilize fleets’ intra-week price volatility.”
Since the DOE resets only once a week, the cost band prevents their daily fuel price from exceeding the weekly DOE price, according to Simons. “Bottom line, the Super KnockOut program will help fleets manage and control fuel expenses by no longer being at the mercy of market forces beyond their control,” he says.
To participate in the Super KnockOut program, fleets commit to purchasing a minimum quantity of diesel fuel monthly at any of the almost 200 Pathway Network truckstop locations. Program participants simply purchase the fuel at day-to-day prices, and cap-style cost bands protect fleets from fuel increases. As daily prices move through the cost bands, the fleet’s fuel price remains stable until a maximum cost reduction is reached. Should prices continue to rise, the fleet retains the maximum benefit of the cap.
“This recent drop in fuel prices is the perfect opportunity for fleets to take full advantage of a program like this,” Simons continues. “Whether this is a true correction or just a dip, either way you look at it, price volatility is not going away overnight.”
Created in 1994, the Simons Pathway Network provides over-the-road truck fleets with a variety of unique, proprietary programs designed to control volatile fuel costs. The Simons Pathway Network of truckstops consists of nearly 200 locations, including 156 Love’s Travel Stops locations as well as independent truckstops.
