The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

A TEXACO petroleum retailer yesterday vowed to lead the charge in lobbying for the sector's protection from big oil companies, telling Tribune Business: "I down but I'm not dead."

Raymond Claridge, operator of Claridge Service Centre at the corner of Mackey and Madeira Streets, told this newspaper that he saw his business fall by as much as 50 per cent during a protracted battle with his distributor over maintenance and supply issues.

As he looks towards a forced exit from his business this summer after 23 years in the industry, Mr Claridge said he was prepared to fight "tooth and nail" for protection for other retailers, and to secure compensation for his employees.

Mr Claridge's plight, which he says highlights the rocky relationship between petroleum retailers and the big oil companies, was brought to the fore last summer when Texaco abruptly locked his pumps and shut down his operation a day after his license was due for renewal. The Court of Appeal recently ruled that the nature of the contract entitled Texaco to the eviction, with Mr Claridge having to now vacate the premises by this summer.

Mr Claridge told Tribune Business: "I'm going to be in a serious financial situation come the end of June. I feel very strongly about my fellow dealers. Most of them are tied up with the bank. They are scared to say anything. I'm down but I'm not dead. I'm going to fight so that hopefully my staff can get their compensation and let the other dealers benefit."

In an interview with this newspaper, Mr Claridge alleged that Chevron's failure to uphold its end of the deal and maintain his station's operating condition, which led to a downturn in business, coupled with his late daughter's medical expenses that wiped out his savings, meant he was facing an uncertain financial future.

Mr Claridge said he was, however, more concerned about ensuring that his staff received due compensation, and would continue to fight for the protection of his fellow retailers.

Mr Claridge said: "When I had my hog operation, I used to treat my hogs better than Chevron treated the dealers. If the oil companies don't treat the dealers properly, how do they expect them to survive to make a return>

"I used to produce close to 100,000 gallons of gas per month. Now, I'm lucky if I make 60,000 gallons per month. We are running out of gas.

"We don't have the money to buy gas, and they put me off of load overload and put me on cash in advance, where I have to pay them 24 hours in advance before they would even accept my notice for delivery."

Mr Claridge said he had been suffering for a long time with old, non-functioning equipment, poor site drainage, roof leakage problems, inadequate generator power and multiple occasions when Chevron had been unable to deliver or was rationing product.

This was highlighted in a letter by Mr Claridge to the company's Bahamas sales manager, Ryan Bain, in October 2010. In a letter to Mr Bain dated December 23, 2010, Mr Claridge acknowledged that the manholes over the gas tanks had been repaired, as well as canopy lights, but the pumps - which had been repaired - became problematic the same night.

Calls to Mr Bain for comment were not returned yesterday. Mr Claridge said: "I was pumping good volume, but because they wouldn't fix the station and keep it up, my customers were just coming and going. My volume dropped down and I got into serious financial trouble."

Chevron issued Mr Claridge a termination letter in August 2011. In response, the chairman of the Texaco retail council, Clyde Pratt, sent a letter to Mr Bain stating that the council viewed the act of termination as "grossly unfair".

A letter by Mr Claridge's attorneys, Bostwick and Bostwick, to Mr Bain in September 2011 noted that Mr Claridge was seeking a renewal of his licence for a period of no less than one year, during which time he would attempt to put his financial situation in order.

Mr Claridge alleged that tensions between himself and Mr Bain then rose after he resisted the push towards a 24-hour operation of his gas station.

Mr Claridge said: "The only thing they can hold against me is that I have been fighting not to work 24 hours a day because the night shift is dangerous, and I did not feel like exposing my staff to that unnecessarily just so that the oil companies could make a couple dollars while my staff put their life on the line.

"It didn't make sense to me because we didn't make enough to even cover their wages. It was ridiculous, so I resisted that. I have been there 20-odd years without doing that. Then I didn't work on Sunday. Everyone knows that that area is like a ghost town on Sunday. Twenty-three years I have been there. Palmdale is a business area, and come Sunday it's like a grave yard."

In a letter from his attorneys to Mr Bain, Mr Claridge indicated he would be more than willing to operate on a 24-hour basis should the lease and licence be renewed. He was also prepared for a potential revision to the rent charged, which was somewhat below Texaco's normal rate.

Mr Claridge said: "Some of these big stations are paying up to $20,000 rent plus 8 and 10 per cent on everything they sell in the shop. I don't know how they make it. I was able to get by even with the extra expense I had.

"The 10 cents increase the Government gave us, we were able to survive on that and I was happy as a pig in mud, but since then the oil companies have gotten more difficult. What little freedom we had, they are clamping down on it more and more. When you sign that contract with the dealers you have tied yourself in, and if you miss and sneeze, and they don't like how you sneeze, they can kick you out of the station. If the oil companies would do what they are supposed to do, I believe we could survive on the current margin."