February 28, 2019 | Vol. 69, No. 5

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Dear PEI Member:

Registration is now open for the 2019 PEI Women Conference, May 1-3, at the Saguaro Scottsdale in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The annual conference combines top-notch speakers, nonstop networking and focused roundtable discussions to help women in the fuel handling equipment industry grow their knowledge and boost their careers. This year, three presenters will share their insights and ideas with the group:

Sarah Moshman, an Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker and TEDx speaker, has been featured on Upworthy, Marie Claire, CNN and “Good Morning America.” Most recently, Moshman directed “The Empowerment Project: Ordinary Women Doing Extraordinary Things,” which has been screened around the world and sponsored by major brands such as Nordstrom, American Girl and Microsoft. She also directed “Losing Sight of Shore,” a film that follows the incredible journey of four women who rowed across the Pacific Ocean. Moshman’s next project will be a documentary examining sexual harassment in the workplace.

Fawn Germer will weave together practical tools, humor and storytelling as she discusses leadership, performance dynamics and change. Germer is a best-selling author with four Pulitzer-nominated books, including the Oprah pick, “Hard Won Wisdom,” a project for which she interviewed 300 women leaders, including Nobel Peace Prize winners, Olympic athletes, CEOs, Academy Award winners and iconic trailblazers.

Rick Long, executive vice president of PEI, will present his predictions and possibilities for the future of our industry. How will Amazon Business, electric vehicles (EVs), self-diagnosing equipment, consolidation and other developments reshape the way you do business? These disruptive technologies and trends promise a different tomorrow for the industry we know today. And change is coming faster than you might think.

PEI is offering conference sponsorships for members who want to reach and support this important audience. For a summary of the sponsorship packages, click here. To learn more, contact PEI Advertising Director Tom Leibrandt, tleibrandt@pei.org, 918-236-3962.

The conference hotel, the Saguaro Scottsdale, is in the heart of Old Town Scottsdale, just steps away from Arizona's best shopping, art and dining.

Registration Opens for PEI Women Conference

EPA to Study Renewable Fuel Emissions

Contactless Card Skimmer?

Mexico Combats Fuel Theft

PEI Foundation Scholarship Deadline Nears

Respond to this Newsletter

by e-mail to the editor, Rick Long at rlong@pei.org

or join the discussion in the Petroleum Equipment Forum

Early bird registration through March 20 is $495 for PEI Women members, $595 for nonmembers (rate includes $100 PEI Women membership). Beginning March 21, registration rates increase by $100. To learn more and register, visit the PEI Women Conference webpage.

EPA TO STUDY EFFECT OF RFS ON AIR QUALITY
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Feb. 22 announced a proposed consent decree in litigation with the Sierra Club over the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).

The Sierra Club had alleged, among other things, that the EPA never completed a required study on the impact of the RFS’s renewable fuel volumes on the nation’s air quality. The lawsuit further claimed that the EPA failed to implement measures to mitigate any adverse impacts, also as required by law.

Under the proposed consent decree, the EPA will conduct the emissions study by March 30, 2020. If necessary, the agency then will have three months to develop a follow-up mitigation plan. Interested parties may comment on the proposed consent decree through March 25, 2019.

CONTACTLESS CARD SKIMMER … OR NOT?
Multiple media outlets reported last week on a U.S. Secret Service warning about a skimmer capable of collecting credit card data from a gasoline dispenser’s contactless payment terminal and then transmitting the stolen data via text message. Further investigation by KrebsOnSecurity suggests the warning may have been premature.

Initial media reports said the Secret Service’s Philadelphia field office found a skimming device inside the contactless payment reader on a dispenser at a retail fueling site. The fear was that such a skimmer could capture and transmit credit card data before it was encrypted. However, KrebsOnSecurity reported Feb. 19 that the circular device was located on the side of the dispenser, not inside the contactless payment reader. The device also was not a skimmer at all. It was, rather, an inexpensive GPS tracker — “the kind of device that a suspicious husband or wife might attach to the undercarriage of the family car to track the other’s whereabouts.”

Investigators now suspect someone filling up a vehicle found the GPS device on his or her vehicle and left it behind at the station.

MEXICO TO REQUIRE FUEL TRACKING SOFTWARE
In an effort to combat fuel theft, Mexico soon will require all retail fueling facilities to install and use government-certified fuel tracking equipment and software.

The requirement, which also applies to refineries, terminals and fuel distributors, takes effect Aug. 1. Covered entities have until Feb. 1, 2020, to comply.

A recent investigation by Mexico’s Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF) uncovered 14,000 incidents potentially reflecting the sale of stolen fuel, mostly at gas stations located near Pemex pipelines. In total, the probe identified up to 10 billion pesos ($526.8 million) in suspected fraudulent fuel sales.

PEI FOUNDATION SCHOLARSHIP DEADLINE NEARS
March 31 is the deadline to apply for the PEI Foundation’s Charles D. Kemp Scholarships for the 2019-2020 academic year.

To be eligible, an applicant must be a dependent of a full-time employee of a member company in PEI’s manufacturer, distributor, service and construction, or affiliate divisions. The applicant also must plan to enroll as a full-time freshman for the 2019-2020 academic year at an accredited four-year college or university. Selections are based on academic achievement, leadership, character, need and the applicant’s intent to contribute to the future of the fuel handling equipment industry. For more information and to download the scholarship guidelines and application form, visit www.pei.org/foundation.

PEI encourages all member companies to make your employees aware of this opportunity by downloading and posting this flyer in your workplaces.

EV HEADLINES
“A total of 41 different light-duty plug-in electric vehicle models were available for purchase in model year (MY) 2018 – 27 of which were plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) and 14 of which were all-electric vehicles (EV). The first two mainstream plug-in electric vehicles, the Chevrolet Volt and the Nissan Leaf, debuted in 2010. The total number of plug-in electric models has grown for every model year except for 2015, in which the number of PHEV and EV models changed, but the total available stayed constant.” — Department of Energy Vehicle Technologies Office, Feb. 25, 2019
“Almost three-quarters of Americans see electric cars as the future of transportation, according to a new Volvo/Harris poll released Tuesday. In the poll conducted last October, which surveyed 1,510 drivers in the U.S. during the middle of October, including 250 electric-car drivers, 74 percent of all respondents agreed that electric cars are the future. Among EV drivers, the number rose to 79 percent. The biggest obstacle wasn't range but available charging infrastructure: 61 percent of respondents cited more charging infrastructure as the biggest factor holding back their purchase, similar to the 58 percent who say their biggest concern is running out of power.” — Green Car Reports, Feb. 26, 2019
“Electric truck start-up and potential Tesla rival Rivian announced a $700 million investment round led by Amazon on Friday. The announcement comes less than three months after Rivian revealed its first two products, an all-electric pickup and SUV that, some analysts have said, could pose a direct challenge to both established truck manufacturers like General Motors and Ford, as well as upstart Tesla, which is developing its own battery-electric pickup.” — CNBC, Feb. 15, 2019

MEMBERSHIP APPLICATIONS
Florida service company. Petro Environmental Consultant Services Inc., 25 Dr. MLK Blvd. E., Belle Glade, FL 33430, applied for service and construction division membership. Muhammad Ilyas is president of the firm, which was established in 2014. Petro Environmental Consultant Services Inc. provides environmental compliance services for petroleum facilities, as well as annual compliance testing and environmental assessments. Sponsored for PEI membership by Glen Corkill, Source North America, Dania Beach, Florida.

China technology company. Kind Autogo Technology, Room 309, 3F, Jiahui International Centre A, Chaoyang District, Beijing, China, applied for affiliate division membership. Jia Yejing is the representative of the firm, which was established in 2015. Kind Autogo Technology has developed pay-by-license plate and pay-by-face technologies for fueling stations. Sponsored for PEI membership by Jaimes Rino, ZCL Composites/Xerxes Corporation, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

California payment solutions firm. POS Without Limits, 24881 Alicia Pkwy., Suite E178, Laguna Hills, CA 92653, applied for affiliate division membership. Nami Amirpour is president of the company, which was established in 2015. POS Without Limits provides merchant services and card processing solutions for gas stations and C-stores. Sponsored for PEI membership by Douglas Young, Confidence UST Services Inc., Bakersfield, California.

New York distributor. Pyrus Petro Service, 2003 NYS Route 104, Ontario, NY 14519, has applied for distributor membership. Mindy Marshall is general manager for the firm, which was established in 2009. Pyrus Petro Service specializes in sales and service of petroleum equipment. Sponsored for PEI membership by Craig Smith, Francis Smith & Sons, Inc., Scott Township, Pennsylvania.
www.pyruspetro.com

ADMITTED TO PEI

● Abdulhamid Alqallaf, KNPC, Safat, Kuwait (o&e)

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The TulsaLetter (ISSN 0193-9467) is published two or three times each month by the Petroleum Equipment Institute. Richard C. Long, Editor. Opinions expressed are the opinions of the Editor. Basic circulation confined to PEI members.