President Donald Trump is putting the Freedom Fuel Network at the center of his pitch on gasoline prices, after the retailer said it would sell fuel for $3.47 a gallon at 25 stations across Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Trump praised the move earlier this month and said the company was undercutting the state average by about 50 cents.
That is why the filling station discount is drawing attention now: Trump posted on July 1 that the lower price would take effect on July 3 at 25 FREEDOM FUEL stations across the Greater Philadelphia Area, and he urged others to follow. The price cut is being marketed as a win for drivers in Philadelphia and New Jersey, who would see relief at the pump if the offer holds.
Industry analysts, however, say the numbers do not look sustainable under current market conditions. ABC News reviewed industry data that suggested selling gasoline at $3.47 a gallon would likely eliminate any profit, and one expert described the business model as jumping off a cliff. ABC News also reported that the lower price could cost the 25 participating stations more than a quarter million dollars every month.
The White House has tried to separate the operation from the president, saying the Freedom Fuel Network is a private company and not associated with Trump. A White House official said the business is simply reducing its margin to make prices more affordable for drivers, that the administration is not involved, and that no funding has been provided. The official also said no other entity or person is subsidizing the cheaper gasoline, even as the network has not publicly disclosed how it can afford the discount.
That gap is what keeps the story open. Customers at a Freedom Fuel Network station in Drescher, Pennsylvania, were celebrating the lower prices Thursday, but some also wondered how the station could sell gas at what looked like an apparent loss. Tim Kerns put the question more bluntly, saying he wanted Americans to ask where the money was coming from for gas discounted by 50 cents a gallon. Until the company explains the math, the price cut looks less like a routine promotion than a test of whether the offer can survive at all.
