DOE asks oil firms to offer discounts, promos amid price hikes

The Department of Energy (DOE) has asked oil industry players to offer discounts and promotions to their customers amid the continuous fuel price hikes since January, its secretary, Alfonso Cusi, said Monday.

Interviewed on Dobol B TV, Cusi said some of the oil industry players already provided a P1 to P3 discount per liter of their products.

“Para makatulong sa publiko, nakiusap po tayo sa mga oil industry players na magbigay po sila ng mga diskwento, promotions. Ginagawa na po ‘yan,” he said.

(To help the public, we appealed to oil industry players to give discounts, promotions. That is already being done)

According to Cusi, the fuel prices have gone up since January this year, from around $50 to $96 per barrel.

The DOE earlier proposed suspending the oil excise tax, which accumulated to P6 per liter for diesel and P10 for gasoline under the TRAIN Law, in light of the fuel price hikes.

However, the Department of Finance (DOF) pointed out that the government will lose P131.4 billion in revenues that can be used to fund pandemic measures due to the proposed suspension of the tax.

Cusi said he understood the position of the DOF, adding suspending the oil excise tax is "easier said than done."

Aside from suspending the oil excise, the DOE also wants the Congress to amend the Oil Deregulation Law to allow the government to intervene amid the continuous spike in petroleum prices. —KBK, GMA News