Shell has opened the largest filling station in the UK (in terms of number of pumps and volume of available fuel) on the M25 near Cobham, Surrey.

The station is part of Extra MSA Group’s new Cobham Service Area, which has its own dedicated junction.

It is situated between Junctions 9 and 10 on the M25, midway between Heathrow and Gatwick and is accessible from both sides of the M25.

The new Shell filling station has a total of 141 fuel nozzles and is the only site on the M25 to sell autogas (automotive liquefied petroleum gas) to drivers.

It also offers six high speed Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV) lanes and three Adblue pumps, a solution designed to help reduce exhaust emissions from diesel engines that is not currently widely available in the UK.

The new station has been built to cater for the significant numbers of fleet drivers and motorists travelling on the M25 every day, which, at the most recent count, was 150,000.

It has the capacity to serve up to 3,400 vehicles a day, compared to an average of 700 at a standard filling station.

In the region of 10,000 vehicles per day are expected to use the overall range of facilities at the Extra Service Area.

At least four fuel tankers will be making deliveries on a daily basis. The fuel tanks on site have the capacity to store more than a million litres of fuel – enough to fill over three swimming pools.

The opening of the new Shell filling station is part of a significant 2012 investment programme for Shell.

By the end of the year Shell expects to have opened 250 sites and introduced 400 forecourt attendants to nearly 300 of its company-owned sites.