October 1, 2019 | 11:01 pm By
Victor V. Saulon Sub-Editor
THE Department of Energy (DoE) said
it estimates that oil companies did not roll back fuel retail prices as much as
they could have, and asked them to explain their price actions on Monday.
“Kailangan lang i-explain ng
mga oil companies dahil magkaiba ‘yung computations ng DoE
with them (The oil companies just need to explain because the DoE’s
computations are different from theirs),” according to DoE Director for Energy
Resources Development Rino E. Abad in a text message Tuesday.
On Monday, oil companies announced a
price rollback of P1.45 per liter for gasoline, P0.60 for diesel, and P1.00 for
kerosene. Ahead of their advisories, Phoenix Petroleum Philippines cut the
prices of its gasoline and diesel products on Sunday by P1.55 and P0.50 per
liter, respectively.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Abad said in
a radio interview that based on DoE calculations, the price cut for gasoline
should have been bigger by about P0.07 per liter; diesel prices should have
been cut by an additional P0.16 per liter.
However, Mr. Abad said a new DoE
computation indicates that gasoline price cuts should have been even larger.
“May updated amount na
(There is an updated amount of) P0.14 for gasoline and P0.16 for diesel na
kulang ang decrease ng (that is lacking in the price decrease of)
oil companies compared to DoE estimate. But same computation (holds) for
kerosene,” he said.
He said the oil companies should
provide clarity on the basis for their deciding on a price reduction, and the
difference in their and the DoE’s computations.
“Oct. 7 nakalagay (has been
set),” he said, when asked about the deadline for oil companies to clarify
their price movements.
On Monday, oil companies that sell
liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) also announced an increase in cooking gas prices
by P4.50 per kilogram, and auto LPG by P2.50 per liter to reflect the
international contract price of LPG.
In the radio interview, Mr. Abad
described these increases as “justified.”
Oil companies adjust the prices of
petroleum products weekly, and LPG products at the end of each month. The
industry did not immediately respond when asked about the DoE director’s
comment.
This week’s price adjustment comes
after oil firms last week implemented a hefty increase in the price of
gasoline, diesel and kerosene on supply fears brought about by the drone attack
on major Saudi Arabian facilities.
The Sept. 14 attack on the Aramco
oil processing facilities at Abqaiq and Khurais resulted in lost crude
production of 5.7 million barrels per day or nearly 60% of the country’s
average production, the DoE has said. Saudi Arabia produced 9.8 million barrels
per day in August, it added.
Last week, the domestic prices of
gasoline, diesel and kerosene rose by P2.35, P1.80 and P1.75 per liter,
respectively, the biggest hike so far this year.
Year-to-date adjustments amount to a
net increase of P6.41 per liter for gasoline, P5.22 per liter for diesel, and
P2.76 per liter for kerosene.
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