Shell vs Citgo Top Tier?

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The 2 big brands in my area are both listed on the TTDG website however, only the Citgo stations post a Top Tier logo on the pumps? Are the brands on the Top Tier website held to being up to the TTDG standard even if they dont post the logo on the pumps?
 
I don't notice the TT designations at BP or Shell which is where I normally fuel up. What I look for is a newer, high volume type station. Some of the old mom pop stores are independently owned and are more likely to put no name generic fuel in their tanks to save a few bucks.

The Shell conglomerate here owns a bunch of Shell Stations that have their own fleet of fuel tankers with the Shell logo. One time I noticed a fuel truck delivering fuel that didn't have the Shell logo. It didn't help matters that the driver was giving me the eye, real shady type character. So I contacted the CEO and asked him about it. He said sometimes they contract with outside carriers for delivery when their trucks can't keep up with demand.
 
I don't believe that the BP station we go to has a top tier sign, it does have a sign (advertisement) hanging that says the gas has "Invigorate".
 
I would think that the Shell stations are selling top tier gasoline. It is possible that some smaller stations may well not be selling Shell gas. But that can happen with any other gasoline brand as well in those circumstances. I have run a whole lot of Shell gas from a number of stations and I have never seen the top tier signs there. But I have no doubt it has been the real deal when buying the gas from those places. I would run Shell over Citgo and I would run Sunoco over Citgo has well. But that's just my personal choice. I am glad that Citgo and Sunoco are both top tier now finally.
 
It's an absolute requirement that every station of a Top Tier licensed brand use an additive in high enough concentration to meet their tests. The license fee is calculated by the number of stations.

I don't know how it works for some brands like Arco where distribution is split, but it could be different additives depending on the parent company.

The base fuel itself is another matter. There are never any guarantees about the source, since gasoline is typically a fungible commodity. Shell has a heavy retail presence in regions where they have no refineries. I suppose they could theoretically pay to have their fuel sent hundreds of miles as a segregated pipeline delivery, but for the most part I'd think they would simply do something like give a certain amount to Kinder Morgan and then make the same amount available at their terminals (or sent to a Shell terminal) in equivalent fuel for delivery to their customers.
 
Strangely enough I've been suffering from sticker shock recently after getting a Shell gift card. It was free with a promotion, but all the Shell stations I've seen are way more than other options like Arco or Costco. It's basically free gas, but I just recoil at the price. Not only that, but they charge the credit card price to use the gift card and not the cash price.
 
This is only tangentially related to the OP, but some people don't know that Citgo is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Venezuelan national oil company, PDVSA. Government control of PDVSA is so tight that only supporters of the late Hugo Chavez' political party can be employed there.

Just an FYI...
 
Originally Posted By: Virtus_Probi
This is only tangentially related to the OP, but some people don't know that Citgo is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Venezuelan national oil company, PDVSA. Government control of PDVSA is so tight that only supporters of the late Hugo Chavez' political party can be employed there.

Just an FYI...

Not sure if that's the case for CITGO in the US. They would have a tough time trying to enforce any political loyalty test in the US.

I do recall there were threats to perhaps cut them off from the CITGO refineries in the US. Venezuela has some of the thickest crude oil anywhere, and few refineries can handle it. They were pretty indignant about it in Venezuela, claiming that they'd eventually add capacity to their domestic refineries. Of course they have a spotty safety record after Chavez fired everyone who wasn't a loyalist.
 
Originally Posted By: y_p_w
Originally Posted By: Virtus_Probi
This is only tangentially related to the OP, but some people don't know that Citgo is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Venezuelan national oil company, PDVSA. Government control of PDVSA is so tight that only supporters of the late Hugo Chavez' political party can be employed there.

Just an FYI...

Not sure if that's the case for CITGO in the US. They would have a tough time trying to enforce any political loyalty test in the US.

I do recall there were threats to perhaps cut them off from the CITGO refineries in the US. Venezuela has some of the thickest crude oil anywhere, and few refineries can handle it. They were pretty indignant about it in Venezuela, claiming that they'd eventually add capacity to their domestic refineries. Of course they have a spotty safety record after Chavez fired everyone who wasn't a loyalist.


Sorry, didn't mean to imply that the political party test applies in the USA! Just can't hurt to be aware of where the Citgo profits are going, although maybe you could argue on humanitarian grounds that the people there could use whatever help they can get now...even if it is through their odious ruling party.

To put a further twist on things, it is possible that the Russian state-owned oil firm Rosneft could take control of Citgo if the PDVSA defaults on $3billion worth of loans from that entity. Wouldn't that be a freakin mess to have a major US oil company run by the Kremlin? Wonder what the Trump administration would do...
 
If they're top tier, they're top tier.

Top Tier certification does not require the logo to be listed at the pump
smile.gif
 
Originally Posted By: slacktide_bitog
If they're top tier, they're top tier.

Top Tier certification does not require the logo to be listed at the pump
smile.gif


If the brand is listed as Top Tier then a label on a pump is insignificant, but some feel that barely meeting the standard is different that vastly exceeding the standard. Many barely meet the standard. I recall 76 claims that they meet the standard plus maybe 20% more detergent additive. Others like Costco or Shell pretty much double it.
 
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