NZ’s first virtual fuel tanks gives Kiwis control

For the first time in New Zealand people can now use a virtual fuel tank to buy fuel in advance, putting more control in the hands of consumers to choose when they buy fuel and at what price. No longer are consumers constrained by the size of their tank.

Z Energy has co-created the virtual fuel tank, named Sharetank, with customers and frontline staff and is trialling it from today through Z App.

People can use Sharetank to pre-purchase Z fuel, rather than waiting for their tank to be empty. They can then use their virtual Sharetank litres later, to fill up at any Z service station.

Z’s Chief Innovation Officer, Scott K Bishop, says until now Kiwis have largely had to accept the current price of fuel and were limited to when they could buy it by the room in their tank.

“We know customers get frustrated when they fill up and the next day their local service station’s fuel price drops because of changes in the exchange rate, costs or local competition. Sharetank lets customers choose to buy fuel when the price is right for them. It’s great for budgeting.”

“Sharetank really is a win-win for our customers. If the pump price goes up after they’ve bought Sharetank litres, customers save as they’ve already locked in cheaper litres. If it goes down, customers will be alerted when they go to fill up and can choose to save their Sharetank litres for another day,” Scott says.

Z’s Chief Customer Officer, Jane Anthony, says using a virtual tank also saves time for people who drive across town to get a better price.

“Customers’ time is precious so when they pre-buy through Sharetank they’ll automatically get the lowest Z pump price within 30 kilometres of their location and won’t need to travel to get it. They can buy from the couch, work, the passenger seat or wherever suits them.”

Customers can top-up their tank with up to 1,000 litres of each of their chosen fuel types (Z Diesel, Z91 Unleaded or ZX95 Premium Unleaded), store it virtually until it’s needed, and choose to share access to their tank with up to 5 friends, whānau, people in the community or employees.

“In the past there hasn’t been an easy way to share fuel. With Sharetank you could bring family home for the holidays, send the kids off to Uni, pay for your apprentice’s fuel, share sports team travel costs or split fuel costs between flatmates who share a car, to name a few,” Jane says.

Z will use the trial to evolve and improve the Sharetank offering based on customer feedback following launch. Learn more at: https://www.sharetank.co.nz.

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