Adrian Portelli is bringing his cut-price fuel play to Adelaide, with the billionaire entrepreneur set to open his first South Australian LMCT+ petrol station in Edwardstown as motorists grapple with surging bowser prices.
The new site on South Road will start pumping fuel from October 3, with an opening party locked in for Friday, October 2 from 6pm to 9pm, where Portelli and business partner Troy Candy are expected to attend.
In a major drawcard for cash-strapped drivers, unleaded is expected to be sold as low as wholesale prices.
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If the turnout mirrors the opening of Portelli’s first petrol station in Melbourne earlier this year, Adelaide motorists are likely to flock to the site, with hopes it could also pressure nearby servos to trim their own prices.
On Wednesday, Unleaded on South Road was sitting at 233.7c a litre, according to the RAA fuel tracker, while prices reached 235.7c on Main South Road, 236.7c on King William Rd at Unley and 236.9c on Belair Road.
Adelaide’s first LMCT+ petrol station will open in Edwardstown on October 3. Source: Facebook
Diesel was even steeper, costing almost 282c a litre on South Road, with some nearby sites charging as much as 290.9c a litre.
In typical Portelli style, the launch has also come with a blunt recruitment pitch.
Announcing the business was hiring, Portelli said Adelaide applicants with petrol station or retail experience should apply, but warned he was only after what he described as an “elite team”.
“The SA petrol station is about to open and we need staff. So if you do want to work for LMCT+, if you are from Adelaide, if you do have experience working in a petrol station or retail for that matter, apply here now,” he said.
“We are looking to hire a highly motivated and ambitious team. If you’re a deadbeat and you’re on drugs, I don’t want you. That’s mean … and I’m sure someone else will take you but I’m looking for an elite team to give the best possible customer experience.”
Adrian Portelli at his LMCT+ petrol station in Preston. Picture: Andrew Henshaw
The Adelaide expansion comes just weeks after Portelli revealed he had relocated his family to Dubai, after previously signalling frustration with Australia’s political leadership, tax settings and public safety.
Portelli said at the time the move had been in planning for years and that he had lodged his intentions with the ATO, while rejecting suggestions he had permanently walked away from Australia.
“Australia is genuinely finished under its current control and leadership in the form of the government and media. It’s a big brainwashing circus,” he wrote on Instagram.
“I’ve been planning this move for three years and lodged my plans with the ATO the entire time.
“My family and I were initially meant to move to Italy, which was going to be the base for my overseas business. However, at the last minute, we changed our plans and chose Dubai.”
Adrian Portelli is a self-made billionaire who uprooted his family for Dubai.
Even with Portelli now based overseas, his business ambitions remain firmly centred on Australia.
The Adelaide petrol station is the latest step in Portelli’s push to turn LMCT+ from a subscriber-driven giveaways business into a broader retail brand tied to daily spending.
Best known for luxury car, home and cash prize draws, the company has increasingly been moving into physical sites and member discounts that go beyond headline-grabbing promotions.
His first members-only petrol station in Preston drew heavy crowds earlier this year, and a similar response is expected when the Adelaide site opens on Saturday.
Portelli has also flagged more discount petrol stations could follow, but his next major retail move appears to be a barber chain under the LMCT+ banner.
The first is set to open beside his upcoming supermarket in Deer Park, in what shapes as the clearest signal yet of the direction he wants to take the business.
So while Portelli may now call Dubai home, his money-making machine remains firmly planted in Australia.