As an aftermath of the drone-induced attack at Saudi Aramco facilities last weekend, prices of gasoline products are expected to soar by P2.40 to P2.50 per liter at the domestic pumps this week.
The price of another socially sensitive commodity, diesel, will also climb higher by P1.80 to P1.90 per liter, while kerosene prices will rise by P1.70 to P1.80 per liter, based on the estimates of the oil firms from the outcome of four-day trading in the world market.
Price adjustments may still change a little depending on how global oil trading turn out last Friday, industry players have indicated.
After surging to an all-time high price level of close to $67.55 per barrel in early trading days last week, Dubai crude – which is the benchmark for Asian oil refiners – had softened to $62 per barrel as of end-week trading.
The Department of Energy previously estimated price hikes of P3 to P5 per liter, but since the anticipated increases have softened relatively, the government may no longer exercise “moral suasion” on enforcement of staggered price adjustments.
Given the recent geopolitical incident in the Middle East, the Senate Committee on Energy is urging the Energy department to draw up short- to long-term mitigating measures that the country can lean on amid oil price shocks that may be triggered by events akin to the confounding drone strike on the facilities of giant oil producer Saudi Aramco.
In a resolution filed by Senate Committee on Energy Chairman Sherwin T. Gatchalian, he is seeking an inquiry tomorrow on the short, medium, and long-term plans of the DoE “to mitigate the adverse repercussions of supply shocks on Philippine oil supply and prices.”
Gatchalian opined that “this attack on Saudi Aramco and the brewing conflict in the region raises concerns on the availability of supply and its effect on oil prices in the Philippines, specifically in the transportation and power generation sectors.”
Sixty-eight percent of petroleum consumption in the country is attributable to the transport sector; 11 percent for commercial use; five percent for power generation; five percent for manufacturing, and 11 percent for other industries such as those in agriculture, mining, and construction. (Myrna Velasco)