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By Euan Paulo Anonuevo, Reporter
In separate announcements before and over the
weekend, Pilipinas Shell, Petron Corp., Chevron Philippines
(formerly Caltex), Total Philippines and UniOil Petroleum said they
will increase the prices of gasoline, diesel and kerosene by P0.50
per liter.
The price increase, however, caught consumers
and the transport sector off-guard as it was announced by the oil
firms in the wee hours prior to its implementation on Saturday.
Oil price hike advisories forwarded to media
were also made in such a manner.
A highly-placed source at the Department of
Energy (DOE) said that although the department is informed several
hours before oil companies implement price adjustments, the
department is not obliged to shout this out to the public.
The oil firms again pointed to the unabated
increase in crude oil prices in the world market as the culprit
behind the higher adjustment in pump prices.
As of March 25, the DOE’s oil price monitor
showed that the month-to-date average price of Asian Dubai crude
increased by about $7 per barrel over the February average of about
$90 per barrel. Likewise, imported gasoline and diesel averages
posted higher by about $5 per barrel and $15 per barrel,
respectively, over the previous month levels.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) earlier
cited the short-term impact of dollar weakness, commodity prices,
rising production and exploration costs as factors influencing oil
prices.
Fortunately for consumers, the contract price of
liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in the world market is expected to
drop this month due to lower demand.
Total, Shell and Petron have announced a P0.50
per kilogram rollback in the price of their cooking gas products
effective Saturday.
The large oil firms’ announcement follows a
similar one made by the group of smaller oil firms under the LPG
Marketers Association (LPGMA) early Friday.
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