First FAST STOP gas station opens in Ontario

Just under 6,000 litres were pumped into the gas tanks of more than 100 vehicles that lined up to take advantage of the opportunity to get gas at a lower price and celebrate the opening of the first FAST STOP® fueling station in Canada in Welland, Ontario on Oct. 29.

An official ribbon cutting ceremony took place at 2:30 p.m. and a $1,500 donation to the Welland Hospital Foundation was made during the opening ceremonies through equal contributions from

FS PARTNERS, UPI Energy LP and Melna’s Service Centre. Local, federal and provincial government leaders showed support by coming out to say a few words and congratulate Nick Melna of Melna’s Service Centre on his new FAST STOP fueling station. After the ribbon was cut, gas prices were reduced for three hours.

“Not only did we have a great deal on gas, but customers also knew that a portion of the day’s sales were being donated to the Welland Hospital Foundation, so there was even more incentive for people to come out and fill up their tanks,” says Andrew Troyer, director of Energy for FS PARTNERS.

Designed for people on the run, the remotely-monitored fueling station was developed and implemented in 2007 by FS PARTNERS, a division of GROWMARK. Consumers can purchase fuel 24 hours a day, seven days a week paying with VISA, MasterCard, Interac, and FS Fuel cards. The FS Fuel card allows consumers to be part of a network of FS branded fueling sites across Ontario offering 24 hour convenience with just one card. The Welland station offers clear diesel fuel and environmentally friendlier ethanol blended fuels.

Local government officials commended Melna on his vision to go with the self-serve remotely monitored system that this FAST STOP offers. Melna said that the self-serve feature gives him more freedom to focus on his service centre customers but also provide a place for local residents to purchase gas easily.

“Being open 24 hours non-stop and convenient location will make life easier for a lot of people who used to drive quite a distance to get gas.” Melna was born and raised in Welland and has owned and operated Melna’s Service Centre since 1999.

In the United States, GROWMARK supports a network of more than 300 FAST STOP branded outlets.



From (L-R): Roman Groch, Board President, Welland Hospital Foundation; Andrew Troyer, Director of Energy, FS PARTNERS; Councillor Jim Larouche, Ward 6 Welland; Malcolm Allen, MP Welland; Nick and Sandy Melna, Melna's Service Centre; Peter Kormos, MPP Welland; Claude Gauthier, Ontario Region Manager, GROWMARK, Inc.; John Canjar, Director, Energy Marketing, Training & Development, UPI Energy LP; Emile Faddoul, Energy Logistics Co-ordinator, FS PARTNERS