Independent LPG dealers eye P33/tank hike in Dec

Citing rising prices in the international market, independent dealers of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) are considering a P33 price hike per 11-kg tank in December. LPG Marketers Association (LPGMA) head Arnel Ty said on Monday that they are bracing for a possible price of at least P600 for each 11-kg tank by then. "Ang sabi lang po namin, ang international market price ay tumataas… Wala kaming nakikita na bababa ang presyo sa P600 ngayong December (What we can say now is that the international market price of LPG continues to rise. We do not see any way LPG prices can go below P600 by December)," Ty said in an interview on dwIZ radio. He said the LPGMA is also "hoping" that the executive order imposing price ceilings on fuel products will be lifted soon. Executive Order 839 freezes prices of fuel products to October 15 levels in Luzon, which is under a state of calamity due to cyclones Ondoy (Ketsana) and Pepeng (Parma). Ty said LPGMA members in Luzon are already complaining they are losing money unlike their counterparts in the Visayas and Mindanao regions that are not covered by the EO. "Medyo may katagalan ang EO, ang kalamidad lumipas na. Kami naman ay very hopeful mali-lift na ito sa lalong madaling panahon (The EO had been in effect for a long time, and the calamity has passed. We are very hopeful the EO will be lifted soonest)," he said.

LPG price hike probe Malacañang ordered over the weekend an investigation into the hike in prices of LPG in the Visayas and Mindanao regions, which has been blamed on the price ceiling on fuel products in Luzon. Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has been directed to see if the price increases are justified. “We are directing the DTI to look into that, whether that is justified or not. If (it is) not justified, the DTI is hereby directed to do what it can to protect the interest of our consumers," Remonde said on government-run dzRB radio. Remonde also said the Palace is directing the Energy Regulatory Board to explain why it allowed the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) to increase its rates by 25 centavos. Earlier, Petron Corp. said it increased the prices of its liquefied petroleum gas in Visayas and Mindanao last Friday. It said the adjustment was to “reflect the rise in LPG contract prices for the month of November." LPG prices in Luzon, meanwhile, will remain unchanged in accordance with President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s Executive Order 839, which puts a freeze order on oil prices in Luzon. The EO noted that Luzon is still under a state of calamity as several areas there were devastated by cyclones Ondoy, Pepeng and Santi (Mirinae). Meralco rate hike On the other hand, Remonde said the Palace wants the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to explain why it allowed Meralco to increase its rates. “Dapat i-explain yan ng ERC na siyang regulatory agency ng presyo ng kuryente (The ERC should explain because it is the regulatory agency that sets power rates)," he said. Meralco will increase its generation charge by P0.327 per kilowatt-hour this month as a result of hike in power supplied by its own independent power producers. But Meralco vice president and utility economics head Ivanna Dela Peña said the hike would only be 25 centavos per kWh due to the reduction in transmission charges amounting to 0.06 centavos and the deferred power purchase adjustment of P0.017 per kWh. She said that the cooler weather at this time of the year would also help reduce generation rate adjustment on the over-all bills of Meralco customers. - GMANews.TV