OTI PetroSmart, a value-added reseller of petroleum payment solutions and products and a wholly-owned subsidiary of On Track Innovations Ltd. (OTI), has been awarded multiple local government tenders in South Africa.

OTI PetroSmart will deploy its EasyFuel Plus contactless solution to facilitate automated refueling at various local government "home base" sites in South Africa. Mobile bowsers (fuel trucks) will also be equipped to facilitate the automated refueling of other fleet items, such as plant equipment. The initial contract is valued at $500,000, which includes hardware and on-going monthly revenues for site monitoring, fuel management reporting, account management, and bureau services, according to the company.

"We are seeing a notable increase in the number of tenders being issued for Automated Vehicle Identification solutions," said Charlotte Hambly-Nuss, managing director of OTI PetroSmart. "AVI is rapidly becoming a benchmark in the B2B market, where the cost of fuel represents a significant portion of the overall operating costs for customers. While tenders have also been issued by major petroleum retailers in various markets, the decision making process is typically significantly longer as the deployment of an AVI solution is tied in to broader objectives from a forecourt automation and retail site architecture perspective."

As a result of high levels of fraud, local governments in South Africa face a major challenge managing fuel consumption at their home base sites, according to the company. OTI's EasyFuel Plusfuel management system allows local government entities to address fuel fraud and meet savings targets by automating the payment process and gathering of data for fuel management purposes.