By ANGELA CELIS and JED MACAPAGAL
The interagency Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) said it is closely monitoring the factors affecting oil prices in the country, and that government remains ready to provide targeted relief assistance and support to address the impact of the oil price hike for affected sectors.
This developed as the Department of Energy (DOE) assured petroleum supply in the Philippines will not be directly affected by the ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine but warned of a continued rise in prices.
To assist the transport sector, the DBCC said the government is preparing to release P2.5 billion for the fuel subsidy program of the Department of Transportation.
“This aims to provide fuel vouchers to over 377,000 qualified public utility vehicle drivers who are operating jeepneys, UV express, taxis, tricycles and other full-time ride-hailing and delivery services nationwide,” the DBCC said.
The DBCC said the Department of Agriculture has a budget of P500 million to provide assistance through fuel discounts to farmers and fisherfolk who either individually own and operate agricultural and fishery machinery or operate through a farmers’ organization or cooperative.
This will help mitigate the impact of elevated fuel prices on production and transport costs of farm and fishery products, the government’s economic team said.
Meanwhile, Rino Abad, director of the DOE’s Oil Industry Management Bureau, said in a statement the Philippines imports finished petroleum products from China, South Korea and Japan which in turn import crude oil from Russia.
Abad said out of the total 5 million barrels per day (bpd) Russian crude oil export, 58 percent is exported to Europe with the remaining 42 percent being sold in the Asia-Pacific.
He added of the 42 percent crude purchased in the Asia-Pacific from Russia, China gets 15 percent equivalent to 1.55 million bpd; South Korea gets 6 percent equivalent to 300,000 bpd; and Japan gets 2 percent or 100,000 bpd.
Abad said other factors that point to a continued upward oil price trajectory is the ongoing daily shortage of production of around 1 million bpd being experienced by Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies including Russia.
The DOE said OPEC and its allies refuse to supplement the shortage despite pressure from US, Japan, China, India and other member countries of the International Energy Agency.
Abad said high price speculation persists among traders due to the uncertainty of Russia sanction not necessarily on oil supply.
Local pump prices have increased for eight straight weeks since the start of 2022.
As of February 17, the average Manila price per liter of gasoline (RON95) stood at P66.35, diesel at P59.27 and kerosene at P60.69.
The DOE said as of February 22, year-to-date adjustments of petroleum products stand at a total net increase of P8.75 per liter for gasoline, P10.85 per liter for diesel and P9.55 per liter for kerosene.
As of first half 2021, the country imported a total of 10,028 million liters (ML) of finished petroleum products, majority of which or 36.8 percent, came from China.
South Korea provided 13.9 percent but Japan’s share was not specified and only counted alongside other countries with small shares at a total of 3.9 percent.
Other top suppliers of finished petroleum products to the Philippines for the period are Singapore (17.7 percent); Malaysia (10.7 percent); India (4.2 percent); Brunei (3.3 percent); United Arab Emirates (UAE) (3 percent); Taiwan (1.7 percent); Australia (1.3 percent); Kuwait and Qatar with 1.2 percent each; and Thailand (1 percent).
For the similar period, the Philippines imported 1,213 ML of crude oil wherein 92.5 percent came from the Middle East while the remaining 7.5 percent from Asean and local production.
Saudi Arabia was the top source of crude, 45 percent; UAE, 34.4 percent ; Oman, 13.1 percent; and Brunei, 7. 5 percent.
