Type Aktiengesellschaft Key people Patrick Wendeler, CEO Website www.aral.de Founded 1898 | Area served Germany, Luxembourg Products Aral service stations Headquarters Bochum, Germany Parent organization BP | |
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Industry Oil and natural gas, alternative fuels, convenience stores | ||
Aral is a brand of automobile fuels and petrol stations, present in Germany and Luxembourg, but formerly used in most countries of Western and Central Europe. The company behind the brand name, Aral AG (previously Veba Öl AG), is owned by BP, but was established in 1898 as Westdeutsche Benzol-Verkaufs-Vereinigung GmbH. The Aral brand was introduced in 1924 and is a portmanteau of the German words "Aromaten" and "Aliphaten", alluding to the aromatic and aliphatic components found in gasoline, respectively.
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On 15 July 2001 it was agreed that 51% of the stakes in Veba Öl AG would be acquired by Deutsche BP AG. Beginning 1 February 2002 the acquisition was completed. The Aral brand name was retained, and 650 BP stations in Germany were rebranded to Aral. 6 BP branded filling stations remained operational in Germany to protect the company's rights to the name, while elsewhere, as Poland and Austria, the Aral stations were switched to BP. In some countries the Aral national chains were sold. Aral's slogan is "Alles super".
Products
Aral offers different petroleum products: Besides classical gasoline, diesel fuel and lubricants, this is natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, such as propane or butane, liquid and gaseous hydrogen and heating oil.
Many Aral gas stations offer a wider range of items, oftentimes also a PetitBistro. Additionally, they provide a car wash to clean the exterior and interior of motor vehicles.
For businesses, Aral offers different types of fuel cards: Aral CardKomfort for small businesses, Aral CardPlus for larger companies and Aral CardTruck with additional truck-related services.
In a customer-study surveying the quality of offers and service in gas stations, done by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Verbraucherstudien (DtGV, German Association for Customer-Studies) in cooperation with N24, Aral finished 3rd behind Q1 and OIL!.
Automotive partnerships
Aral AG is an official long-term recommended fuel of Volkswagen, Audi, BMW (until late 2014), Ford, Jaguar, Honda, Lamborghini, Land Rover, Mazda, SEAT and Volvo for automobiles in Germany. Aral AG is also an official long-term recommended fuel of Honda and BMW motorcycles in Germany.
Motorsports
Aral AG is an official long-term fuel supplier for the touring car racing series Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters since 2005 with Aral Ultimate 102 unleaded racing gasoline.