HWR Group

20th century HW Richardson was founded by Invercargill builder Robert Richardson in 1939. It began investing in the transport sector in 1939, In 2015, the company purchased transport companies in Hawke's Bay. The following year, it purchased a 50% stake in its main Southland competitor Dynes Transport. In 2016, HWR Group purchased a group of commercial properties in Central Invercargill, leading a strip club to relocate and an outdoor shop to close. HWR became a major property owner in the area. It sold and leased some of this land in 2020. In November 2019, First Union members at Allied Petroleum went on strike. The union accused the company of discouraging union membership and refusing to negotiate collective agreements. In July 2021, the announcement of the likely closure of the Tiwai Point Aluminium Smelter was expected to have a major impact on the business. The smelter had been a major client. In 2021, construction began on a nine-storey HWR Group tower in Invercargill, with the company using the top four floors to house an office with 100 staff. ==Fuel==

Allied Petroleum Allied Petroleum is one of New Zealand's largest fuel distributors through its partnership with ExxonMobil. Allied provides its franchisee outlets with self-service systems and a regular supply of fuel with limited price fluctuations. This allows many sites in remote, otherwise unprofitable locations to operate at low cost with few or no staff. It has 69 outlets in New Zealand, including 33 full-scale service stations. Outlets are concentrated in the South Island. It has only one in Auckland. Its Pongaroa outlet, opened in 2017, is run by local residents as a joint venture between Allied Petroleum and Tararua District Council. A Douglas DC-3, painted in Allied Petroleum branding, was suspended next to State Highway 1 at the site of a former outlet in Mangaweka. It was partially dismantled and moved away for maintenance in May 2021. Racing driver Greg Murphy is the company's brand ambassador. It has 12 outlets, including four in Melbourne, one in Ballarat, two in northern Victoria, and five in north-western Victoria. ==Other companies==

HWR owns a range of trucking companies, including Allied Bulk, Andrews Transport, Cromwell Bulk Distribution, Farmers Transport, Freight Haulage, Herberts Transport, Hokonui Rural Transport, Kapuka Heenans Transport, Purdue Bros, Ryal Bush Transport, Ryal Bush Transport Ashburton, Southern Transport, Te Anau Haulage, Transport Services, Upper Clutha Transport, Dynes Transport Tapanui Limited and McLaren Ranfurly Transport. Most of these companies exclusively serve South Island farms and rural businesses. The group includes concrete brands Allied Concrete and Ashby's Ready Mixed, lower South Island contractors SouthDrill and SouthRoads, and quarry companies Allied Materials, Fernhill Limeworks, Rangitikei Aggregates and Southern Aggregates. It also includes several waste disposal companies, like Allied Bins, Bond Contracts and Southern Transport Waste. ==References==