"It was an irony. We have always been the market leader, but we were not perceived by the motorists as such. We have been privatized but Petron’s name was always associated with being a government entity," said Canillas.
Hence began a deep and lengthy self-examination that would lead to the current success of Petron brands such as XTRA Unleaded, Blaze, XCS Plus, Ultron, Diesel Max and Gasul.
The company identified the drivers of consumer preferences in a bid to be more relevant to their almost exclusively Philippine customers.
The company’s strength was in partnering relationships, foremost of which is with strategic shareholder Saudi Aramco as well as with its dealers, thousands of them nationwide and of late, even abroad.
"Even before we launched our corporate branding program last year, we were already rallying the troops, so-to-speak. Petron employees know that the customer has many choices in a deregulated environment, and the way we conduct ourselves affects our relationship with our customers. Now, everybody in Petron is fueled, we’re fired up and driven. We know what we stand for and our place in the lives of our customers," Canillas explained.
When Petron finally launched its"Fuel Success" campaign last year, the firm’s 1,200-strong workforce was fully behind it.
"Like Petron products and as articulated in our advertising campaigns, we at Petron believe we are enablers, catalysts for achievement. Other companies with foreign principals can just pull out when the economy is not good, but Petron is here to stay and we are committed to serve our customers and our country. While others are shutting down oil refineries, we modernized and improved ours," Canillas said.
In May 2005, the company commissioned its $100-million Clean Air facilities at its refinery in Limay, Bataan. The facilities–22,000 barrel per day (bpd) Gasoil Hydrotreater (GOHT) and a 10,000 bpd Light Virgin Naphtha Isomerization (Isom) unit–put Petron in a unique position of being the only oil company in the country capable of producing Clean Air Act (CAA)-compliant fuels to meet its domestic requirements.
It is this commitment to the nation that drives Petron to expand its partnerships, allowing it to bring in additives and tailor-fit products to the needs of local customers, offer value-added services such as the only fleet card with a micro-chip, credit card financing and serve communities through a wide range of corporate social responsibility projects that touches vital aspects of their customers’ lives.
Most notable of these is "Tulong Aral" a free primary education program for some 4,000 school indigents to "fuel hope" and dreams for the poor. Petron likewise "fuels creativity" among the youth through its multi-awarded national arts competition, "ArtPetron." Petron TREATS, its convenience store, "fuels experience" through its weekend treats events with top local bands and entertainers.
Last year, the company took a step further in bringing its products closer to the hearts of motorists by providing not only a fuel-efficient gasoline like Xtra Unleaded, but free driving clinics to raise awareness on "responsible motoring." "Fuel Drive" made a successful run with veteran race driver Pocholo Ramirez giving motorists one-on-one behind-the-wheels test drives. These and many more exciting products and innovative activities put Petron’s Fuel Success program at the forefront of the industry.
As a market leader, Petron is leading the charge in supplying the requirements of LPG-(liquefied petroleum gas) fueled vehicles. The company piloted two stations with LPG (called X-Tend AutoGas) refueling pumps late last year and will increase this to 10 within the first quarter.
Due to the almost P10 price differential between LPG and unleaded gasoline, motorists with converted vehicles can switch to LPG power and save a bundle. If their supply runs out, they can switch back to unleaded gas and continue driving. Most of the X-Tend AutoGas pumps are inside fleet taxi compounds.
With innovative solutions like this, Petron hopes to sustain the spirit of its Fuel Success campaign, reconnect with the markets it serves, and drive up its market share even further in the local oil industry.