The Department of Energy (DOE) is finalizing a draft of amendments it wants Congress to change to the oil deregulation law and will submit the proposed changes to lawmakers ‘soon,’ an Energy department official said on Tuesday.
‘[We] have completed a draft amendment,’ Energy department Director Rino Abad told a congressional hearing. ‘It is being finalized today, and soon we will be submitting it to Congress for amendment.’
Efforts to revise the country’s oil deregulation law have gained traction after the conflict in the Middle East underscored the Philippines’ vulnerability to global supply shocks.
An import-dependent country, the Southeast Asian nation has faced record pump prices since the US-Israeli war with Iran erupted in late February.
Republic Act No. 8479, or the 1998 Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act, allowed oil companies to set pump prices based on market factors without government approval.
‘We’ve seen the improvements on all angles on the oil deregulation law,’ Abad said ‘But this will be presented in time with Congress.’
He said the Energy department is also looking at recommending changes to the Price Act, without providing any specifics.
‘Well, it’s a different law. But we’ll maybe take a look also at the Price Act,’ he said.
The Philippines will keep influencing fuel prices next month to ensure pump prices reflect international market moves and curb profiteering, Abad added, as the nation reels from soaring pump prices from the war in the Middle East.
‘Now, we cannot prevent the movement, but we can prevent overcharging,’ he said. ‘We have ensured that it should be consistent with the movement of the international price and biofuel price.’
Abad said authorities are waiting for May 1 to track global oil prices, when the world’s largest oil producer, Saudi Aramco, releases its contract pricing.
‘Rest assured… that the May 1 increase or decrease will be dictated on oil and LPG (liquified petroleum gas) companies,’ he said.
Energy Secretary Sharon Garin last week said the government now has the power to enforce fuel price adjustments, including limiting hikes or setting a minimum rollback after Mr. Marcos issued Executive Order No. 110 in March.
‘So that’s our new rule now,’ she said. ‘That’s because of the issuance of the executive order, which triggered the additional powers of government to prescribe the price during these times of emergency.’