ABERDEEN - BP America Inc. says it's pulling out of most of
South Dakota and all of North Dakota, Wyoming, Louisiana and Texas,
deciding instead to focus on areas closer to its refineries.
In South Dakota, Sioux Falls will retain a BP presence because
the city is close enough to an Indiana refinery, company officials
said.
BP has about 13,000 gas stations in the United States, and
about 350 could be affected by the decision. The company plans to
serve the affected areas until April 1.
"I think it really caught everybody off guard," said Randy
Bonn, owner of an Aberdeen BP station. "They (BP) haven't been here
that long."
Another Aberdeen gas station owner, Mike Carrels, said he was
surprised the announcement came so soon. "I expected it in the next
two years," he said.
Carrells, a BP station owner, is trying to decide whether to
be independent or choose another brand. "We are shopping for the
best value for our customers," he said.
He said he is considering whether a brand is well known, if it
offers customer credit cards and other perks, and whether it will
stay in the area.
BP isn't the first brand to leave. ConocoPhillips left parts
of South Dakota early last month.
British Petroleum, which started in 1901, was already known
informally as BP when it entered into the North American oil
business as a pioneer explorer in Alaska during the late 1950s, the
company said on its Web site.
After a series of mergers and acquisitions with Amoco, ARCO,
Burmah Castrol and Vastar, BP had become the largest oil and gas
producer and one of the largest gasoline retailers in the United
States by 2001, according to the company.
