Billionaire Adrian Portelli’s national cheap fuel play

Adrian Portelli’s LMCT+ fuel push is set to hit the street, with a Preston Shell site in Melbourne’s north being rebadged as the brand’s first visible petrol location. Pictures: Instagram

Billionaire Adrian Portelli is gearing up to take on Australia’s fuel war, with the first LMCT+ petrol station appearing on one of Melbourne’s busiest roads.

The site located in on the corner of Gower St and Plenty Rd, Preston in Melbourne’s inner north is the first physical site to emerge under the LMCT+ banner, with new signage already on display.
A highly visible sign that Adrian Portelli’s long-teased national fuel ambitions are starting to materialise.
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Reaction was immediate online.

Within hours of LMCT+ teasing the petrol push online, comment sections erupted with demands for cheaper fuel, calls for specialist blends and tongue-in-cheek pleas for Portelli to take on far more than the bowser.

“Can you just buy Australia and fix it,” one follower wrote.

The online hype had been building for months, with posts captioned “LMCT+ Petrol incoming” fuelling speculation about where the first location would land.

‘If they don’t comply, make them regret it’: LMCT+ ramps up the language as the group teases its petrol rollout. Picture: Instagram

“If they don’t comply, make them regret it,” LMCT+ wrote in an Instagram teaser post.

Behind the scenes, belief in Portelli’s ambitions is already running well ahead of the single Preston site.

“People keep thinking this starts with petrol, that’s the funniest part,” an industry insider said.

“Petrol is just the on-ramp.

“For sure, he’ll have 500 sites in 10 years, this is going to be big.”

Portelli has previously framed the fuel venture as a direct response to consumer frustration, saying it was born after major petrol chains refused to offer what he described as meaningful discounts to everyday Australians.

LMCT+ is pitching its servos as more than a bowser stop, flagging ‘rewards hub’ style sites designed to plug members into discounts and promotions. Picture: Instagram / LMCT+

“The big players in the petrol game didn’t want to give you guys discounted fuel,” LMCT+ said in a social media post.

“So Adrian’s gone out and bought his own to give members a whopping fuel discount.”

Portelli himself has made little effort to downplay the scale of his ambitions.

“Time to level up,” he said. “Servos, gyms, supermarkets. I’ll do the lot.”

The first LMCT+ petrol site is taking shape in Preston, where fresh branding has started appearing at the former Shell station ahead of an opening later this year. Picture: Instagram

His fanbase has proven willing to follow him into almost anything, from giveaways to television, with Portelli set to feature alongside design personality Neale Whitaker on My Reno Rules later this year.

LMCT+ has also been spruiking side ventures designed to keep members locked into the ecosystem, including an in-app “LMCT+ Dating”.

The giveaway recruits singles aged 25-35 for a first-date trip somewhere in Australia, with Portelli promising to pay for the wedding if it leads to marriage.

Industry experts say the choice of Preston in Melbourne’s north stacks up commercially.

JLL retail investment senior analyst Dom McGrath said middle-ring suburbs like Preston were attractive for service-station operators when the fundamentals were right.

“Bell St carries more than 40,000 vehicles a day, which delivers exceptional exposure,” Mr McGrath said.

“From a service-station perspective, that level of passing traffic is critical.”

He said success depended less on postcode prestige and more on precise positioning.

“Exposure to a major arterial like Bell St, strong visibility and ease of access are the key ingredients,” he said.

Portelli’s profile is set to climb again in 2026, with the entrepreneur appearing alongside Neale Whitaker on My Reno Rules as he expands the LMCT+ brand beyond giveaways. Picture: Instagram/AdrianPortelli

Despite growing debate around electrification, Mr McGrath said service stations remained lucrative assets in the near to medium term.

“Average fuel margins are sitting around 17 cents per litre,” he said.

“Pure EV sales have softened slightly, while hybrid petrol vehicles are growing strongly. There’s still solid demand for traditional fuel.”

From an investment standpoint, he said land value and lease security continued to underpin prices.

“Strong tenant covenants, rental income and lease tenure drive value,” Mr McGrath said.

“In many cases, the underlying land component accounts for a significant proportion of a service station’s overall worth.”

The Preston rebadging lands as motorists remain fed up with loyalty schemes, discount cycles and overnight price spikes, frustration that has helped turn Portelli into a lightning rod for public anger.

For now, Preston remains the only visible LMCT+ petrol site.

But if the insider chatter proves even half right, Preston may just be the starting line.

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david.bonaddio@news.com.au