Shell, Eastern, Phoenix to roll back gas prices Tuesday

MANILA, Philippines—Three oil firms announced on Monday decreases in pump prices that will take effect Tuesday, June 26, to reflect the reduced prices in the international oil market.

Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. said it would slash the price of Fuel Save Gasoline, V-Power Nitro+, V-Power Nitro-Racing by P1.80 per liter; diesel/kerosene by P1 per liter; and regular gasoline by p1.40 per liter.

Eastern Petroleum said it would roll back prices for unleaded gasoline and Intensity premium gasoline by P1.80 per liter, Power diesel/kerosene by P1 per liter, and regular gasoline by P1.40 per liter.

Phoenix Petroleum Philippines will decrease the prices of gasoline by P1.80 per liter and diesel by P1 per liter effective 6 a.m. Tuesday “to reflect the continued decline in the prices of refined petroleum products in the world market.”

Most local oil companies operating have implemented price rollbacks, according to the Department of Energy’s (DoE) Oil Monitor report posted on the Department of Energy’s website.

The report said that last week the Metro Manila prices of diesel ranged from P38.50 to P41.25 per liter, gasoline from P45.45 to P53.07 per liter, auto LPG from P26.06 to P27.06, and LPG (11-kg, dealer’s pick-up) from P562 to P700.

Oil prices have been falling recently due to concerns about the eurozone debt crisis and perceptions of an oversupply in the oil market, the Oil Monitor said.

“Oil prices generally slipped as investors and traders were reluctant to add positions, looking forward to the result of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) meeting and Greek elections.

Specifically, traders were looking for any change in OPEC’s output policy given that some view the market as oversupplied,” the report said.

However, DoE said that contrary to some market views on supply fundamentals, the International Energy Agency (IEA) noted in its latest monthly report that the world oil market is currently better supplied, “not oversupplied.”

The OPEC, meanwhile, has projected that the global oil supply and demand balance would ease further in the second half of the year. The DoE said this would be due in part to a slowing global economy. As such, DoE said, OPEC decided to cut production by 1.6 million barrels per day but the target was never adhered to and production has risen in April and May despite sanctions against Iranian crude exports, the DoE’s Oil Monitor said.

Originally posted: 5:29 pm | Monday, June 25th, 2012