DOE: PH fuel supply good up to 50 days

The country’s fuel inventory remains good for 50.42 days, or enough until late May, amid the global oil supply disruption caused by ongoing tensions in the Middle East, the Department of Energy (DOE) said Tuesday. 

The DOE said that the country has 75.052 million liters of fuel supply as of April 3. 

“That means the supply we have as of today is good up to 50 days, which means latter half of May. So ang ibig sabihin nun, it’s not like we won’t have any more supply after May or at the end of May. It basically means we have 50 days to replenish what we consume,” said Energy Secretary Sharon Garin at a press briefing. 

(That means the supply we have as of today is good up to 50 days, which means latter half of May. So what that means is, it’s not like we won’t have any more supply after May or at the end of May. It basically means we have 50 days to replenish what we consume.) 

The country now has 23.326 million liters (57.58 days’ worth) of gasoline; 32.516.million liters (47.26 days’ worth) of diesel; 142,140 liters (106.22 days’ worth) of kerosene; 6.320 million liters (66.37 days’ worth) of jet fuel; 2.472 million liters (52.26 days’ worth) of fuel oil; and 10.274 million liters (33.10 days’ worth) of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).

The Energy Department explained that the process of ordering oil may take up to 10 days and deliveries may take about a week. 

“The normal lead time for us to order oil, especially for our oil companies and including PNOC, is normally 7 to 10 days. Kapag umorder ka at ma-lock in mo na yung order, delivery can take normally would be about a week to get here to the Philippines, because most of them come from Southeast Asian countries, including Japan and China as well,” said Garin. 

(The normal lead time for us to order oil, especially for our oil companies and including PNOC, is normally 7 to 10 days. Once you place an order and you are able to lock it in, delivery can take normally would be about a week to get here to the Philippines, because most of them come from Southeast Asian countries, including Japan and China as well.) 

But the DOE assured that there are no major “disruptions” yet that are affecting the whole fuel chain supply in the country. 

“So far wala pang disruptions na nare-report, mayroong mga pakunti-kunti, pero hindi ganun na it disrupts the whole chain of the country,” said Garin. 

(So far no disruptions have been reported yet; there are some very minor ones, but not to the point that it disrupts the whole chain of the country.) 

Former Energy Secretary Jericho Petilla earlier said that Filipinos should brace for a prolonged period of high fuel prices despite the possible end to the Middle East conflict, tax cuts, and government interventions.

Fuel companies implemented on Tuesday another major pump price hikes, marking the 13th straight week of increases for gasoline, and the 15th for both diesel and kerosene, as the conflict in the Middle East continues to escalate. — RSJ, GMA News