Chevron has announced that it will be introducing Apple Pay at its gas pumps, allowing customers to fill up their tanks with their iPhones and, when Apple introduces it, Apple Watches.
Replying to a customer on Twitter who asked if it is possible to use Apple Pay at the pump, the oil company says it is already working with Apple to bring its mobile payment system to the gas pump by "early 2015."
@SingAsana We are working alongside Apple to develop solutions to integrate with Apple Pay at the pump by early 2015.
— Chevron (@Chevron) Dec. 29, 2014
Chevron is the only oil company to accept Apple Pay payments. Currently, however, mobile payments are limited to the company's 3,000 Chevron and Texaco convenience stores, including all ExtraMile locations, across the country. This means customers who want to use Apple Pay will have to step inside the store to pay with their iPhones using the cash register, adding an extra step of inconvenience in a payment method conceived by Apple to be the most convenient of all.
In October, when Chevron announced that it will be accepting Apple Pay payments in its convenience stores, the company said it was also working out a solution with Apple to accept mobile payments at the pumps.
"Initially, Apple Pay payments will be made in the store, but we are working along with Apple Pay on developing the technology out at the fuel dispensers as well," said Chevron spokesperson Braden Reddall at the time. Although Chevron initially promised a rollout by "early 2015," the company says there is no definitive timeline about when customers can expect to be able to use Apple Pay at Chevron's pumps.
@SingAsana To clarify, Chevron is working alongside Apple to integrate Apple Pay at the pump, but a timeline is not set. — Chevron (@Chevron) Dec. 29, 2014
Chevron says it is still continuing the introduction of NFC point of sale terminals to the 3,000 convenience stores it has nationwide.
@SingAsana Chevron will continue rolling out Apple Pay for in-store sales to 3,000 stores this year.
— Chevron (@Chevron) Dec. 29, 2014
Apple Pay is not the first mobile payments solution, with competitors such as Google Wallet and Softcard, introduced years before the Apple solution. However, Apple Pay is widely considered to become the first mobile payments system to become widely accepted by the general public, and the numbers prove it. Only introduced in late October, Apple Pay already accounted for 1 percent of total digital sales the following month.
Thousands of merchants, including big-name retailers such as McDonald's, Walgreens, Bloomingdale's, Sephora and Whole Foods, have already signed on to Apple Pay upon launch. Since then, other retailers have entered partnerships with Apple Pay, including grocery store chains Winn-Dixie and BI-LO and retailer Staples.
The system is currently limited to users in the United States, although reports have claimed that Apple is in discussions with "Britain's top banks" to initiate Apple Pay and Europe. Similarly, a job listing found on Apple's website is looking for an "Apple Pay intern" in London, whose responsibilities include working to drive the rollout of Apple Pay in Europe, Middle East, Asia and Africa.
