Our story
Keeping West Cornwall warm since 1970.
What began as one coal round in St Just is now a family business with oil, bottled gas and coal divisions, still run by the Semmens family, three generations on.
Through the years
From one coal round to three divisions.
Fifty-odd years of keeping Cornish homes, farms and businesses warm.
It all starts with coal
Stanley Semmens buys his first coal round and Semmens is born.
Father and son
Stanley's son Stephen joins the business after they buy a second coal round.
A home at Leswidden Common
A new depot opens in St Just. Other coal merchants buy from us, while we deliver to our own customers too.
Bottled gas arrives
We start delivering bottled gas across mid and west Cornwall, building a lasting partnership with Flogas.
Ready for the future
A new computer system streamlines the business as Stanley retires.
The first yellow tanker
Stephen spots the need for a local oil supplier with top-class service and fair prices. The first tanker rolls out, soon followed by another.
Building the depot
Seven storage tanks for heating oil, gas oil and road diesel, plus a loading gantry for the tankers.
Third generation
Stephen's son Mark joins as a tanker driver, and the baby tanker joins the fleet. Mark goes on to run the depot and become a director.
A family affair
Stephen's daughter Michelle joins the office team.
Oil, gas and coal
Three divisions, one family, and the same promise: friendly local service at competitive prices.
Tricky access? No problem
Meet the baby tanker.
Cornish lanes weren't built for big lorries. Our smaller tanker gets fuel to almost any customer, whatever the access is like.
- Narrow lanes, steep drives and farm tracks
- Tanks tucked away round the back
- The same friendly drivers and fair prices
What we do
Three divisions, one family.
Oil
Heating oil, gas oil and road diesel, delivered by our own tankers from our St Just depot.
Get today's price →🔥Bottled gas
One of Flogas' biggest independent distributors in Cornwall. We haul cylinders to Flogas depots around the South West.
Shop gas →⛰️Coal
Where it all began. House coal and smokeless fuels for stoves, ranges and open fires.
Shop coal →The family
Three generations of Semmens.
Bought the first coal round in 1970.
Joined in 1979 and brought heating oil to the business.
Started as a tanker driver in 2000, now runs the depot.
Joined the office team in 2006.
Still family-run. Still local.
Talk to real people who know your lane, your tank and your name.