Adrian Portelli has teased an LMCT+ Petrol launch in Adelaide after his company was fined $40,000 over unlawful lotteries in South Australia.
Billionaire Adrian Portelli has launched a swipe at a South Australian politician while teasing expansion of his cut-price petrol empire.
The Block buyer offered politician Andrea Michaels a job to cover her legal costs, just months after his company was fined $40,000 over unlawful lotteries in the state.
“If you need a job to cover your legal costs, we’re hiring,” Mr Portelli wrote from his verified Instagram account.
The comment came after the LMCT+ Instagram account posted a graphic declaring: “Coming to Adelaide, SA. LMCT Petrol is on the way.”
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“They thought they could get rid of us out of SA … SOUTH AUSTRALIA FIRE UP, LMCT+ is coming back,” the post read.
The move marks Mr Portelli’s latest attempt to turn LMCT+ into a cost-of-living business spanning fuel, groceries and member discounts.
It also gives the Melbourne billionaire another national flashpoint after the first season of his renovation show My Reno Rules wrapped on Tuesday night.
Mr Portelli was found not guilty of nine charges relating to unlawful lotteries in South Australia.
His company Xclusive Tech, trading as LMCT+, was found guilty of 10 charges and fined $40,000.
Adrian Portelli wrapped Seven’s My Reno Rules on Tuesday night, months after cementing his national profile with a $15.03m sweep of The Block in 2024. Picture: Seven
South Australian politician Andrea Michaels was targeted by Adrian Portelli in a pointed Instagram comment after LMCT+ teased its Adelaide petrol move. Picture: Keryn Stevens.
The court was told prizes included cash, prestige cars and homes Mr Portelli had bought on The Block.
Magistrate Melanie Burton said there needed to be consequences, noting the business was a commercial enterprise and “not a charity”.
One insider said the Adelaide move would be seen by LMCT+ fans as Mr Portelli planting a flag in the state where authorities had tried to rein in the business.
“Adrian Portelli is f—king taking over Australia, and people need to start realising what they’re watching,” the insider said.
“The man told everyone exactly what he was going to do, and then he went out and bloody did it.
“To his fans, this is more than a petrol station. It’s Portelli planting a flag in the exact place where they thought they’d clipped his wings.”
LMCT+ Petrol customers have already flocked to Preston in Victoria, where cut-price fuel promotions sparked long queues and major online attention.
A concept image for the planned LMCT+ Tarneit site in Victoria, as Adrian Portelli expands his fuel and rewards business beyond Preston.
LMCT+ Petrol is already operating at Preston, where cut-price fuel promotions sparked long queues.
A Tarneit fuel site is also in the works, while the business has moved into supermarkets, with the first LMCT+ supermarket understood to be the IGA in Deer Park.
In that announcement, Mr Portelli told followers: “We’ve got the petrol up and running, pumping millions of litres a month, and now we’ve got the supermarket that’s about to drop.”
Online speculation has already turned to where the first Adelaide fuel site could land, with one commenter claiming a Marion Rd service station was “happening”.
Vanta Advisory buyer’s agent Alex Groh said Adelaide made commercial sense for LMCT+ as a fuel launch market because of its scale and relative affordability.
Vanta Advisory buyer’s agent Alex Groh said Adelaide made commercial sense for LMCT+ as a launch market.
“Adelaide is a strong market,” Mr Groh said.
“It’s a big population centre, with more than two million people, and we’ve seen a lot of investment flow there.”
Mr Groh said Marion Rd would be a logical corridor for a fuel operator if the site had the right exposure.
“Marion Rd is a quality, key arterial road,” he said.
“It depends on the exact area, but if it’s a prominent corner site, that makes sense.”
LMCT+ Petrol has not yet confirmed the site of the first petrol station in South Australia.
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