Shell to raise gas, kerosene, diesel prices Tuesday

MANILA, Philippines—Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. is raising prices of premium gasoline by a hefty P1.40 a liter; regular gasoline by P1 a liter; kerosene by 70 centavos a liter; and of diesel by 55 centavos a liter, effective Tuesday at 12:01 a.m.

According to Pilipinas Shell, the latest price movement reflected the upward adjustment of fuel prices in the global oil market. Other oil companies are expected to follow suit.

Energy Undersecretary Jose M. Layug Jr. said in a phone interview that the latest oil price hike was close to the estimates of the Department of Energy (DoE).

Layug explained that the uptrend in fuel prices was due to the latest decision of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to cut oil production, the increase in gasoline demand in Asia and the shutdown of Shell’s Palau Bukom refinery in Singapore.

In a recent oil monitor report by the DoE, it cited Platts as saying that the “price strength in the Asian gasoline market is due to the shutdown of Shell’s Pulau Bukom refinery in Singapore. The refinery, which includes a fluid catalytic cracker that makes gasoline, exports 90 percent of its products to Asia-Pacific.”