Heartland Payment Systems, one of the nation's largest payment processors, and The Pinnacle Corp., a supplier of technology automation solutions for retail convenience stores and fuel inventory management, Thursday announced they have launched the first integrated, EMV-compliant point-of-sale system for petroleum retailers.

Petro retailers are encouraged to upgrade their outdoor pay-at-the-pump equipment to accept EMV by October 2017.

With the help of Heartland and Pinnacle, petro retailer Lynch Oil of Burley, Idaho, is upgrading the POS system at six Mr. Gas locations in southern Idaho to accept EMV payments. Upon completion of the project, Lynch Oil will be the first petro retailer to use the EMV POS system, according to a press release.

"We do our best to be the first to offer the most effective advancements in card payments and point-of-sale systems, especially when it enhances our customers' experiences at our Mr. Gas locations and protects their card data from hackers," Nick Lynch, owner or Lynch Oil and president of Mr. Gas, said in a statement. "Pinnacle and Heartland help enable us to be the first petroleum retailer to have a POS system for EMV acceptance in the U.S."