Petron PH top taxpayer among oil firms

MANILA, Philippines—Petron Corp., the country’s largest oil refiner and retailer, has been cited as the top taxpayer in the Philippine oil industry as it contributed P22.3 billion to the total collections of the Bureau of Customs (BoC) last year.

According to Petron, the amount represented nearly 10 percent of the government agency’s total collection of P227.53 billion as of end-2010.

The amount collected from Petron came from millions of barrels of crude oil and finished products that the oil company imported to meet the country’s requirements for fuel products.

“We are honored by this recognition by the BoC. As a Filipino-owned and -operated company, we deem it our responsibility to strictly abide by the country’s laws. You can be assured that we will continue to be transparent and remain staunch partners with the government in nation-building,” said Ramon S. Ang, chairman and chief executive officer of Petron in a statement.

“Through our contribution, we have an indirect impact on the lives of our countrymen since these taxes are used to fund government projects such as road networks, school buildings and educational initiatives,” Ang said.

In 2010, Petron reported that its sales volumes reached nearly 43 million barrels to supply about 40 percent of the country’s fuel requirements, particularly for such industries as manufacturing, transport, aviation, construction, agriculture, power generation and mining, among others.

Petron also has the largest retail service station network with over 1,700 gas stations spread out across the country. It also operates the 180,000-barrel-a-day refinery and petrochemical business in Limay, Bataan, which is currently the largest oil refinery in the country.

The oil company is now in the midst of a planned $2-billion investment to upgrade its refinery, which would enable Petron to produce more higher-margin products, as well as special types of gasoline and other oil products for consumers.

Meanwhile, to address fuel supply concerns arising from the continued tensions in the Middle East and North Africa, Petron has committed to the government that it would maintain a high level of inventory of crude oil despite the huge cost to the company, to help the government’s program to avert a potential oil supply shortage.