NEWS RELEASE December 3, 2013 Greed amid calamity Reverse deregulation policy to stop oil price hikes Anakpawis Rep. Fernando L. Hicap today urged the national government to reverse the downstream oil industry deregulation policy that is the culprit of successive oil price hikes. Oil companies are exhibiting greed amid calamity. This is offensive and unacceptable. Effective at 6:00 am today, oil companies Shell, Petron, PTT and Phoenix increased pump prices by P0.35 per liter for gasoline and P1.35 per liter for diesel. Shell and Petron also imposed an additional P1.20 per liter of kerosene. The usual alibi of the oil companies is the rising world crude oil prices. Except for Bohol, Samar, Leyte, Capiz, Aklan and Iloilo, consumers all over the country will bear the brunt of another oil price hike imposed by big and independent oil players. The average price of gasoline is now at P52.90 per liter. While the country is reeling from successive calamities and devastation, these oil companies are only concerned about their profit margins. It doesnt matter to these oil companies if the country is in the middle of a humanitarian crisis. They just have to increase their prices no matter what. Sobrang pagkaganid na ito ng kartel ng langis, the solon said. Rep. Hicap who authored House Bill 255 that seeks to repeal the Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act. Hicap said consumers are also burdened by the big-time price hike imposed on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) products. Since Monday, retail prices of LPG increased to as much as P14.30 per kilogram. Petron hiked Gasul prices by P14.30 per kilogram; Total increased its LPG prices by P13 per kg. while Solane LPG increased by P9.90 per kg. For this month, the average price of an 11-kg. LPG cylinder tank is around P900. Oil companies said the short supply and high demand of LPG during the winter season pushed the prices upward. This vicious and unending cycling of oil price hikes will continue as long as the deregulation policy is in effect. For the past 16 years, oil companies have used and abused the deregulation law only to rake in millions of profits, Hicap said. The Aquino government must seriously consider scrapping the deregulation law and legislate economic policies that will nationalize the local oil industry and protect consumers from the overpricing and profiteering of oil companies, Hicap said. Consumers need a reprieve from price hikes. To immediately lower oil prices, the government can reduce or remove the 12% VAT on socially sentive oil products like diesel, kerosene and LPG, the Anakpawis solon said. Petron posted multibillion in profits Hicap noted that oil companies posted billions in profits at the expense of consumers. Petron Corp. owned by the Presidents uncle Eduardo Danding Cojuangco, which accounts for 35.9 percent of the downstream oil market, registered a consolidated income of P4.4-billion for the first nine months of 2013, an eight-fold increase from its P559 million income in the same period last year. Local oil companies are operating as a cartel and imposes frequent price adjustments based on their whims and caprices. The first step towards dismantling the oil cartel is to repeal the oil deregulation law, Hicap said. Pilipinas Shell accounts for 22.5 percent of the market; and Chevron, 9.6 percent. Other firms like Phoenix, Total, Liquigaz, Unioil, Seaoil and Jetti account for 29.7 percent of the market. ###
Posted on: Tue, 03 Dec 2013 04:56:56 +0000
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