|
By Euan Paulo C. Añonuevo, Reporter
Coming off a rollback in pump prices on Tuesday, big oil companies
assured the public of adequate supply of liquefied petroleum gas
(LPG) amid concerns about dwindling availability of cooking gas and
autogas in the market.
Bobby Kanapi, spokesman for Pilipinas Shell
Petroleum Corp., told a press conference that the company’s
customers could be assured of continued supply of LPG products
despite tightness in supply.
“Despite supply tightness in Asia-Pacific, our
Shellane customers can be assured of continued supply,” he said.
Shellane is a brandname of Pilipinas Shell for its LPG.
The region is currently experiencing a shortage
in LPG supply, Kanapi added, as a result of traditionally high sales
during winter in light of strong demand for the commodity for
heating purposes, lower production because of refinery shutdowns in
China and indirect effects of the Russia-Ukraine gas dispute.
The public-affairs manager of Petron Corp. also
assured that the company has adequate supply of LPG for its
customers.
“We saw an increase in LPG demand,
particularly in December, but we have managed to satisfy even the
incremental demand,” Virginia Ruivivar said.
She added that a tanker carrying 2,000 metric
tons of LPG is set to arrive today at Petron’s Bataan refinery
north of Manila.
Five additional shipments totaling more than
12,000 metric tons are also arriving within the month at Petron’s
refinery in Bataan province, north of Manila. At the Petron terminal
in Batangas, south of Manila, several shipments totaling more than
5,000 metric tons are expected before the month ends.
A growing number of consumers across Metro
Manila have complained of shortage in cooking gas and autogas supply
in the past few weeks, which LPG retailers and refillers blamed on
lack of supply from oil firms.
Supply adequate
But Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes said that the
oil firms have adequate supply as found by the department first hand
in spot checks conducted in the firms’ LPG facilities.
“The problem is the shipments are arriving,
but we don’t see [them] in the outlets where people can buy. The
government is checking on this . . . to look at the entire supply
chain from distributors to the outlets. So we will inspect storage
facilities, refilling stations and dealers and see to it that
nobody’s taking advantage,” he added.
The supply shortage in Asia-Pacific has resulted
in higher contract prices in the international market for LPG, which
rose by more than $40 per metric ton in January, that would spell
higher acquisition costs for local oil firms.
Because of the higher contact prices, Kanapi
said Shell would have implemented a P2 per kilogram (VAT exclusive)
increase in its LPG prices effective 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.
Other large LPG suppliers, which include Petron,
Total (Philippines) Corp. and Liquigaz Philippines Corp., have yet
to announce as of press time if they would follow Shell’s price
increase.
But the oil firms generally followed one
another’s price adjustment yesterday, implementing the first
rollback in pump prices for the year.
In separate text and email messages, Shell,
Petron, Chevron Philippines Inc. (formerly Caltex) and Eastern
Petroleum Corp. announced a P0.50 per liter cut in their diesel,
gasoline and kerosene products.
PTT Philippines Corp. cut its prices by P1 per
liter across all its fuel products at the pumps.
Edgar Chua, Shell country chairman, said the
latest rollback signifies the transition to more timely price
adjustments in the downstream petroleum sector.
As earlier announced, Shell aims to move toward
“greater pricing transparency” by reflecting weekly movements of
product prices and foreign exchange. This means that oil price
adjustments will not be moderated, whether upward or downward.
Data from the Department of Energy showed that starting January 13,
the prevailing domestic price in Metro Manila for diesel ranged
between P27.70 and P32.50 per liter; unleaded gasoline, P29 and
P32.46 per liter; kerosene, P36.50 and P41.44 per liter; autogas or
autoLPG, P17 and P19.30 per liter; and cooking gas, P400 to P474.64
per 11-kilogram cylinder.
|
