A former director of First Active has set up a new national brand and buying group aimed at garage owners interested in breaking away from the major oil distributors.

Gerry Murphy, who owns a garage in Co Cork, has mailed the 1,500 garage owners around the country with plans to develop a national petrol and diesel retailing brand. Details of the new company are expected to be released this week and a significant advertising campaign will follow.

A company called Great Gas Petroleum (Ireland) Ltd has been set up for the purpose. Mr Murphy has said the company will attempt "to take on the large oil distributors by founding a national brand and creating a new buying group".

The founders of the company believe garage owners could do better without being tied to a large oil distributors. They claim the large distributors control garages to such an extent that garage owners "make zero on petrol and diesel sales or prices look stupid".

The company is promising to take an active part in dealing with a range of alternative suppliers to help garage owners achieve a better purchase price.

If the idea gains support from petrol retailers, Mr Murphy believes none of the existing oil distributors could match the combined purchasing power of the new entity. The new group is not planning to get involved in food retailing or other services offered at garages.

"Our aspiration is to have 100 branded outlets by 2010 but we could operate successfully on a much smaller number as our overhead is cut to the bone," Mr Murphy said over the weekend.

He said the new company would be a "hybrid commercial co-operative" with 40 per cent of the equity distributed amongst "early bird" members and the balance held by the founders who have provided all the risk capital for the launch.