BRUSSELS, May 23 (KUNA) -- Kuwait Petroleum International, known by its trademark Q8, announced Thursday that it is investing heavily in its Belgian network following the acquisition of 75 service stations from U Car Services and VP Oil, both part of the Uhoda Group.

There will soon be 540 stations in the Q8 network - a 15 percent increase. This allows Q8 to further strengthen its position and optimize its national coverage, said Q8 in a press releae here.
The newly acquired stations are mainly situated in Liege and Limburg provinces in eastern Belgium.
In Limburg, Q8 was less present than in other parts of the country until now. "Thanks to this acquisition, we have optimized the geographical spread of our offer. So these 75 extra stations are perfectly complementing our existing network, which is now expanding by one sixth," said Fadel Al-Faraj, Managing Director of Kuwait Petroleum International (KPI) Northwest Europe.
"This significantly larger network is part of our strategy of stronger customer focus, more mobility products and services. We are proud that we are strengthening our position as one of the top players in Belgium," he noted.
In total, Q8 will have 540 stations in Belgium after the acquisition; 325 stations are manned, 215 stations are unmanned, 126 stations with Shop and Go and 122 stations with Panos stores.
On his part, Azzam Al Muttawa, Executive Vice President Marketing, KPI said "I'm very proud of this tremendous achievement. The acquisition of 75 stations in Belgium by our colleagues from Q8 Northwest Europe is the largest in 15 years.
"It is the result of splendid cross-departmental teamwork. This is the way forward in the 2040 strategy; to anchor and strengthen our presence in Europe," he stressed.
Some 65 of the 75 stations are currently operating under different brand names. Over time, most will undergo a rebranding consistent with the Q8 house style.
This acquisition is subject to several conditions precedent, including the agreement of the Belgian Competition Authority, which is expected in the coming months, noted the Q8 press release.
Q8's future strategy aims at maximum customer connection. The acquisition is part of that strategy.
"A larger network literally allows us to be closer to our customers and to achieve our steep ambitions in terms of customer focus, linking up with our Delhaize Shop & Go's, the Panos and Nespresso offer and our brand new Q8 smiles program," Al-Faraj pointed out. (end) nk.hb