Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Upcoming Event

Best Places to Work in Virginia

Hamburger Menu Hamburger Menu

Tag: Foster Fuels

Foster Fuels wins potential $442M FEMA contract

Brookneal-based fuel delivery provider Foster Fuels has won an up to $442 million contract to provide emergency services to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Under the five-year Defense Logistics Agency Energy (DLA) contract, which the Defense Department announced May 15 and Foster Fuels announced Tuesday, Foster Fuels will be the prime contractor for emergency fuel delivery services via truck, rail and/or transportation barge. The contract covers locations throughout the continental U.S. and its territories, according to the Defense Department.

The contract has a one-month option, with a May 31, 2029, completion date.

The fuel delivery company has held the federal emergency fuel delivery contract since its inception in 2006, according to a company news release. Its Mission Critical division has supplied fuel support during multiple natural disasters, including the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Superstorm Sandy in 2012, 2017 hurricanes Harvey, Maria and Irma, the 2021 winter storm in Texas and Hurricane Ian in 2022.

“This contract is not just a recognition of our company’s capabilities; it is a well-deserved acknowledgment of the joint efforts of our entire Foster Fuels team and our key partners,” Foster Fuels CEO Watt R. Foster Jr. said in a statement. “Our commitment to serving our nation as a mission-critical emergency fuel provider remains firm as we strive for continued excellence and perpetual growth in every aspect of our operations.”

Established in 1921, the privately held Foster Fuels provides residential, commercial, agricultural, transport and emergency fuel services, including delivering propane, diesel fuel, heating oil and lubricants.

Retail | Wholesale | Food | Beverage 2023: WATT R. FOSTER JR.

In 1989, Watt Foster Jr. bought Foster Fuels from his father, the late Watt R. “Bobby” Foster Sr. The younger Foster marks the third generation to run the family business, which was founded in 1921.

In June, Foster was named one of 11 winners of Ernst & Young’s 2023 Entrepreneur of the Year Mid-Atlantic Award.

Foster Fuels holds the prime contract for emergency fuel with the federal government, and through the company’s Mission Critical division it has responded to relief efforts including Hurricane Katrina, the Haiti earthquake and, more recently, the Texas ice storms and Hurricane Ian. This year, Foster Fuels became the first fuel provider on the East Coast to offer net-zero hydrotreated vegetable and waste oil (HVO) renewable diesel fuel, which is derived from used cooking oil.

The business’s success allows Foster to focus on the Watt Foster Family Foundation, which donated more than $460,000 in 2021 to support disadvantaged children, scholarship funds and local charities. Foster also has placed more than 2,000 acres of land under conservation easements.

WHAT MAKES ME HAPPY: Being at the lake with my family