MANILA – Fuel from alternative sources will start arriving this month to boost country’s strategic petroleum reserve (SPR), according to the Department of Energy.
The Philippine National Oil Company-Exploration Corporation is scouting for several sources,” DOE secretary Alfonso Cusi told reporters on the sidelines of the e-trike launch on Wednesday.
“Hindi lang Russia tinitingnan natin. Russia is an option. There are other options that we’re looking at. PNOC-EC is looking towards the end of June na dumating ang first shipment,” he said.
Cusi noted an SPR is necessary to insulate us from the impact of possible oil supply disruptions due to geopolitical uncertainties. “Syempre, nababahala rin tayo na pag nagkaroon ng disruption ng supply maapektuhan tayo. Kaya ang gobyerno nag dedevelop ngayon ng strategic reserve.”
PNOC-EC is now negotiating with partners that have storage facilities in Subic, Quezon, and other areas.
Oil importation by PNOC-EC may also help unbundle fuel rates. “Kailangan natin i-unbudle ‘yan. That’s part of the transparency program na gusto ng gobyerno. Itong pag import will help us in unbundling cost because we have a way to benchmark it,” Cusi noted. (GMA News)
