North Canaan’s Citgo to become a Shell

NORTH CANAAN — Within the next few weeks, the Citgo station at the Xtra Mart in the center of town will be changed to a Shell station.What the rebranding means for gas prices remains to be seen. But an official of Xtra Mart Convenience Stores, based in North Grosvenordale in northeastern Connecticut, confirmed this week that the station will partner with Stop & Shop to accept points customers earn in the Gas Rewards program.“We are very excited to bring that convenience to the neighborhood,” said Pete Porter, vice president of Motor Fuel for Xtra Mart. “We’re working on town permitting now and expect to do the change before summer.”Beginning April 29, Stop & Shop Supermarkets began partnering with Shell franchises (all Shell gas stations are independently owned) who chose to opt in. For every dollar spent at the grocery store, shoppers with customer cards earn one point. Points accumulate at a 10 cent-per-gallon discount for every 100 points.Until the Shell deal, area residents who wanted to take advantage of the program had to drive about 30 minutes to the Stop & Shop gas station in Winsted. The Shell station in Sharon is now accepting points, as are three stations in Torrington, one in Winsted and another in Lee, Mass. The deal adds to the 70 or so Stop & Shop gas stations more than 600 Shell stations in the Gas Rewards program.