Cheyenne Suarez

Energy Usec. Sharon Garin attends the Finance Subcommittee E's public hearing on the proposed 2024 budgets of government owned- and controlled corporations (GOCCs), namely National Power Corporation, Philippine National Oil Company, and the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation on September 22, 2023. During the hearing, Garin, a former lawmaker, called for the establishment of a national policy on the condonation of debts of electric cooperatives. Joseph Vidal, Senate PRIB handout

Article (news)

Up to 300,000 barrels of diesel to be delivered to PH next week, says DOE

Alvin Elchico

ABS-CBN News

MANILA -- The Philippines has already ordered 250,000 to 300,000 barrels of diesel from an undisclosed Southeast Asian country that will be delivered next week, according to the Department of Energy.Energy Secretary Sharon Garin has confirmed the order is part of the government&#x27;s effort to help the private oil firms procure future supplies of fuel.Garin said the government continues to look for other sources on a government-to-government scheme, but the products will be sold at cost to private oil firms.The amount is small compared to the daily usage in the Philippines, as this will only be good for 2 days of supply. But the government is continuing to look for other sources to ensure that the supply for May is covered, Garin said.Despite reports that fuel supply will only last until mid-April, Garin assured consumers that the current supply can last until the end of April, though hoarding and unnecessary purchase of consumers and businesses can exhaust the current supply earlier than projected.<div>CAP OR LIMIT SALES OF FUEL?</div>Garin said as a general rule, there will be no capping or limit on how much fuel can be purchased at pumping stations.A Petron station along Don Antonio Drive in Quezon City has put a limit of 20 liters per vehicle to ensure that all customers get a supply of cheaper fuel.Garin said she will not sanction the practice, as this is a way to prolong the current supply as long as stations still sell fuel to customers, albeit on limited volume.<div>WORST CASE SCENARIO</div>The DOE said it is working to prevent supply from running out, which is the worst case scenario projected by the government.Garin said she is confident that this will not happen as long as efforts to procure supply, though expensive as well as no hoarding is maintained at all times.<div>OIL DEREGULATION LAW AMENDMENTS</div>In a one-on-one interview, Garin also said she supports amending the Oil Deregulation Law, specifically on the issue of price unbundling and having a strategic oil reserve.Other big countries maintain strategic reserves for cases like the war in the Middle East, where supply is disrupted. In the Philippines, private oil firms are mandated to maintain a 15 to 30-day inventory of fuel, but the government does not have its own.Garin said she favors amending the Oil Deregulation Law so that the government is able to establish infrastructure and facilities to maintain strategic oil reserves.Garin also wants it explicitly stated in the law that oil firms are mandated to divulge their cost components to make sure they do not engage in unwarranted profits.Earlier, Bayan Muna wrote Garin to force oil firms to unbundle prices so that consumers can see how much oil companies&#x27; profits are, especially in times of crisis like what&#x27;s happening now.Based on the first three trading days in the world market, fuel prices are set to rise again next week by these amounts:Diesel         P7.00/liter ⬆️Gasoline    P5.00/liter ⬆️Kerosene  P10.00/liter⬆️This does not yet include risk premium and profit margin of oil firms, so another hefty oil price hike looms again next week.But there are still 2 trading days left that may slash or further bloat the price adjustments for this week, which will be reflected on retail pumps next week.

The amount however is good for just an extra two days, with the current fuel usage levels in the country.

The amount however is good for just an extra two days, with the current fuel usage levels in the country.