Dubai-headquartered Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC) is setting up a new business to eventually complement its existing retail play: fuel-on-demand service.

ENOC Link, the new service for businesses and fleet owners across the UAE, is being set up under the company’s ‘Next Digital Accelerator Programme’.

Though ENOC Link focuses on B2B customers, it will later extend services to private car owners. It has a fleet of around 30 vehicles to service both its business and consumer clients.

“We are doing both, but we currently see more value for B2B,” Zaid Alqufaidi, Managing Director, ENOC Retail said.

Businesses can access ENOC Link through various channels ranging from call centres to WhatsApp. The purpose-built fuel supply vehicles equipped with smart meters, will offer petrol and diesel of various specs and are operated by fully trained drivers.

B2B customers will be charged based on location, quality and the volume required, while private car owners can use a dedicated app for the service for 10 UAE dirhams.  

“Today, people are transacting through apps. Likewise, we have seen retail business shifting to on-demand, and though we are selling fuel, our service is just like any other retail product,” said Alqufaidi.

“Instead of customers queuing at our service stations, we want to come to their locations and service their vehicles,” he noted.

The official clarified that ENOC Link’s coverage would not be limited to Dubai.  “ENOC is retailing fuel in Dubai and the Northern Emirates, so we are talking with local authorities in Sharjah and other emirates. We have obtained the approvals and eventually, we will be deploying our fleet there.”

He also pointed out that ENOC Link would serve areas where the company is not present or has inadequate presence.

“We have a network of 130 plus service stations in the UAE, but we are not present everywhere,” he said.

Business can make use of ENOC Link’s fraud-prevention features backed up by advanced fuel analytics and an on online dashboard that tracks realtime fuel consumption.

“Customers can not only get fuel on demand but also see what is going on when the vehicle is being serviced,” said Alqufaidi.

The B2C app is still in the testing phase and will be deployed in selected communities in Dubai based on availability of parking areas to conduct the service.

Talking about competition and regulations in the fuel-on-demand space, ENOC Group CEO Saif Humaid Al Falasi said, selling fuel in the UAE is limited to three companies - ADNOC, ENOC and Emarat.

New and existing providers of the service will be subjected to regulations that will be finalised by the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy, he said.

“There will be new regulations not only for fuel but for all oil products in Dubai. The final standard and specifications are under process now and I expect this will be finalised by Supreme Council of Energy within a couple of months,” he added.

In June, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of The Executive Council Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum had issued Executive Council Resolution No. (16) of 2019 forming the Dubai Regulatory Committee for Petroleum Products Trading. The committee is responsible for all the duties prescribed in Federal Law No (14) of 2017 on Trading in Petroleum Products and its bylaws and any other relevant regulation issued by Supreme Council of Energy.

(Writing by Anoop Menon anoop.menon@refinitiv.com, editing by Seban Scaria)

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