But beyond the branding, the key question for distributors is simple: what does this change in practice?
At a time when supply resilience, margin pressure and the pace of the energy transition are all under scrutiny, the role of wholesalers has never been more critical – or more visible.
For many distributors, relationships built over decades are now being reframed within a new structure, prompting both interest and understandable caution.
MB Energy positions the rebrand as a step towards greater alignment – bringing together capabilities across supply, trading, marketing and customer engagement under a single identity. The intention is not to replace what exists, but to strengthen it – providing a more coordinated platform from which to serve customers navigating an increasingly complex market.
For UK distributors, however, the implications go beyond structure. Questions around supply security, sourcing strategy, product evolution and customer demand remain front of mind.
Just as importantly, there is growing interest in how wholesalers will support their customers through the practical realities of transition – balancing long-term ambition with the immediate needs of today’s businesses.
To explore what this means from the inside, Fuel Oil News brought together voices from across MB Energy – spanning supply, sales, marketing, fleet and organisational leadership.
What emerges is not a single narrative, but a collection of perspectives shaped by different roles across the business – each offering insight into how the market is evolving, where the pressure points lie, and what distributors should be thinking about next.
MB Energy: At a glance
What’s changed
- Alignment of Mabanaft, BWOC and associated businesses under the MB Energy brand
- Greater integration across UK wholesale sales, supply and customer-facing functions
- A broader group identity spanning fuels, fleet, logistics and mobility solutions
What hasn’t
- Existing customer relationships and local expertise
- Focus on supply reliability and flexibility
- Commitment to supporting distributors through market volatility
What distributors should watch
- Increasing emphasis on flexibility and optionality in supply chains
- Growing demand for lower-carbon and “drop-in” fuel solutions
- A more consultative approach from suppliers as customers navigate transition pressures
In conversation: Voices from across MB Energy
Caroline Watkins – Managing Director UK
Leading MB Energy’s UK strategy and organisational integration.
For Caroline Watkins, the MB Energy rebrand is less about replacing legacy businesses and more about bringing together capabilities that already existed across the group.
“The shared brand is one part of the transformation we are undertaking as a group,” she explains. “Bringing our diverse brands and businesses together allows us to streamline our organisation, optimise our value chains, and simplify our face to market.”
In practical terms, she says, greater integration between UK wholesale sales and supply teams should improve customer responsiveness by enabling businesses to draw on the group’s wider UK infrastructure rather than operating through individual legacy entities.
That broader alignment comes at a time when the commercial realities facing the sector are changing rapidly.
“The commercial reality is that markets are constantly changing and, in the case of traditional fuels, will continue to shrink as the energy mix varies,” Caroline says. “We are moving to a more targeted account management model in order to be part of the customer journey, seeking to partner with our customers for the long term.”
Supporting distributors through ongoing market disruption remains a key priority. Caroline points to refinery closures, macroeconomic instability and supply uncertainty as ongoing pressures, while highlighting the importance of international trading capability and integrated systems in maintaining supply resilience.
Looking ahead to 2030, she believes successful distributors will increasingly be defined by their ability to use data effectively, diversify fuel offerings and work collaboratively with customers.
Attributes of successful distributors, Caroline suggests, will be: “Data informed decisions, multi fuel offering and the ability to manage their customers’ needs in a proactive and collaborative way.”
James Ewing – Head of UK Wholesale & Supply
Focused on supply resilience, sourcing strategy and wholesale operations.
While recent geopolitical events have once again tested the market, James Ewing believes the UK’s physical fuel supply position remains fundamentally resilient.
“From a physical availability standpoint, UK supply resilience is robust,” he says. Noting changes since the start of March James suggests: “The bigger challenge right now isn’t outright availability – it’s that it’s not always in the optimal place at the ideal time.”
That mismatch between product availability and market demand has been compounded by significant price volatility, particularly following the Iran conflict.
“As the UK is a net importer for most ground fuels, pricing remains the main pressure point,” James explains. “Import costs are still significantly higher than they were beforehand. That feeds through into replacement costs and keeps the market volatile.”
Against that backdrop, flexibility has become increasingly valuable.
“At MB Energy, we’ve always focused on security of supply first, rather than simply chasing the very lowest price,” he says. “Our approach has been to keep as many supply and operational options open as possible – across different terminals, import routes and logistics partners.”
For distributors, James believes strong relationships and communication across the supply chain are becoming more important than ever.
“Keeping strong relationships across the supply chain, planning ahead where possible, and working with suppliers who can genuinely offer flexibility all make a big difference,” James says.
“Markets are still moving quickly, so the real differentiator is having partners you can rely on when those factors change. Ultimately it comes down to trust, communication, and being able to pick up the phone and get a straight answer and practical solution, when it’s needed most.”
Amy Jones – Head of Organisation – Local
Working across people, operational structures and customer experience.
As businesses across the sector continue to centralise and automate operations, Amy Jones believes the meaning of “local” is evolving rather than disappearing.
“Local is not so much about where the office is located but about the customers’ experience,” she says. “Customers want to know they are speaking to someone who understands their situation. They want relationships and trust.”
While automation is increasingly streamlining routing, administration and depot processes, Amy says that rather than making operational roles less important, they are becoming more customer-facing.
“Depot staff are becoming the link between automated systems and customers,” she explains. “The focus is moving toward proactive, customer-facing problem solving, handling exceptions, providing updates, and ensuring service continuity with local knowledge and responsiveness.”
As digital systems become more deeply embedded into fuel distribution operations, the skills required are also changing.
“Knowledge of digital systems and continuous improvement are key,” Amy says. “Employees need to understand the end-to-end operation to ensure it fits customer needs.”
Interestingly, she suggests some businesses may now be reassessing earlier centralisation strategies in the light of customer needs.
“Some businesses have taken centralisation too far,” she says. “The challenge for these businesses is reversing this centralisation, which is far harder than the initial implementation.”
Miriam James – Managing Director, Silvey Fleet
Focused on fleet mobility, fuel cards and customer transition support.
For Miriam James, the fleet conversation has moved well beyond simple fuel purchasing.
“Commercial customers are increasingly looking for complete mobility solutions rather than simply fuel supply,” she says. “It’s no longer just about providing fuel locations – it’s about offering the right locations, fleet insights, management tools and data.”
That shift is also changing the role fuel cards play within the wider transition landscape.
“Customers will continue to require reliable roadside energy solutions, regardless of whether that is traditional fuels or alternative options,” she explains. “Fuel cards therefore remain an important part of the transition.”
The MB Energy group’s truckstop network is already evolving to support multiple fuel and energy solutions including HVO, hydrogen and EV charging.
Miriam believes one of the biggest opportunities for distributors lies in helping customers navigate uncertainty around decarbonisation.
“Many businesses are still unsure which route is right for them,” she says. “Distributors have an opportunity to act as trusted partners – helping customers navigate change, identify the right solutions for their operations, and transition at a pace that works for their business.”
Claire Foster – Product Marketing Manager
Tracking product evolution, fuel trends and customer demand.
Claire Foster says the UK fuel mix is undergoing gradual but important structural change.
“Conventional fuels are still core to the UK fuel mix,” she explains, pointing to the continued importance of diesel across heavy-duty transport, agriculture and backup power. However, she notes that electrification, efficiency improvements and regulatory measures are steadily reshaping demand patterns.
Other fuels are also emerging – bio-LNG, hydrogen and e-fuels – but with current consumption relatively limited.
Among lower-carbon alternatives, she identifies HVO as currently seeing the strongest growth.
“We are seeing growth in demand for immediate ‘drop-in’ solutions,” she says. “Of these HVO is the fastest growing.”
Claire notes how some transition trends that are already more established in Northern Europe are beginning to emerge in the UK. Hydrogen adoption within transport, for example, remains at an earlier stage domestically, but she points to growing infrastructure development and regional pilot activity.
By contrast, Germany is already seeing wider fuel-cell fleet deployment and stronger refuelling infrastructure expansion – developments she believes offer an indication of how parts of the UK market could evolve longer term.
Claire also highlights growing customer focus on carbon transparency and evidence-based decision making.
“Customers are placing far greater emphasis on CO₂ savings, feedstock origins and certification standards,” she explains, referencing increasing industry attention around initiatives such as the Renewable Fuels Assurance Scheme (RFAS).
“This reflects a broader move to evidence-based decision making on lower carbon fuels,” Claire suggests.
At the same time, flexibility is becoming increasingly important.
“Customers are increasingly looking to trial solutions like HVO across parts of their fleet or adopt blended fuels as a more gradual step,” she says.
Claire is seeing both of these trends strongly reflected in long-term supply and tender discussions.
“Customers expect suppliers to deliver not only reliable conventional fuels supply, but also credible, flexible pathways to decarbonisation.”
For Claire, one of the key challenges facing the sector is balancing decarbonisation ambitions with operational and commercial realities.
“Customers want to decarbonise, but in a way that minimises cost and operational impact,” she says. “It’s important to highlight that there are ways to decarbonise without incurring operational risk, and at the right pace for their business.”
Sarka Feltwell – Team Lead UK (Marketing)
Focused on brand integration, communication and customer engagement.
For Sarka Feltwell, the MB Energy brand is intended to represent “alignment, scale and simplicity” across the group’s UK businesses.
“The rebrand is not about losing heritage – it is about strengthening it,” she says. “Reliability, supply security and strong local customer relationships remain at the core of the business.”
Sarka suggests that customers need to understand not just what is changing but, equally importantly, what is staying the same.
“Ultimately, transition works best when customers feel supported rather than disrupted.”
In a market facing significant uncertainty, Sarka believes customers are responding most strongly to messaging grounded in operational reality.
“Distributors are responding most strongly to messaging around reliability, partnership and practical support,” she explains. “Customers increasingly want expertise and guidance, not just product supply.”
In sectors still heavily reliant on traditional fuels, Sarka also warns against transition messaging that overlooks the practical realities many operators still face.
“Many companies talk about the future in extremes, without recognising the operational realities customers face today,” she says. “Businesses want clarity around availability, performance, infrastructure and commercial impact – not just ambition statements.”
For Sarka, credibility ultimately comes from transparency and pragmatism.
“The strongest communication acknowledges that transition will take time and that different sectors will move at different speeds.”
The MB Energy rebrand may represent a structural and visual change, but the strongest message emerging from across the business is arguably one of continuity: maintaining reliable supply, trusted relationships and operational flexibility while preparing for a more diverse and complex energy future.
Fast takes: What distributors should be thinking about now
Across the conversations, several common themes emerged:
Flexibility matters more than ever
Whether discussing sourcing strategy, fleet transition or customer engagement, contributors repeatedly pointed to the value of optionality and adaptability.
Relationships remain critical
Despite increasing automation and centralisation, trusted relationships and responsive communication continue to be seen as core differentiators.
Transition will not be one-size-fits-all
Contributors consistently emphasised the importance of practical, commercially viable pathways rather than rigid approaches to decarbonisation.
Data and insight are becoming competitive advantages
From fleet optimisation to customer management and operational planning, better use of data is increasingly viewed as essential to future success.
Image credits: MB Energy
