Unioil sells alternative fuel products

Unioil Philippines Inc. has joined other oil firms that are offering alternative fuels in its retail stations, an industry official said.

"We are wondering why there was no mention of Unioil as one of those oil firms that are carrying biodiesel products in their gasoline stations.  In fact, Unioil is one of the most supportive and strongest advocates of the biodiesel products," Chemrez Inc. public affairs manager Carlos Palad said.

Chemrez is one of the Department of Energy (DOE)-accredited manufacturers of coco-biodiesel under a brand name of "Bioactive".

At present, Petron Corp., a semi-government and country’s leading oil company; Flying V and Eastern Petroleum Corp., two of the most aggressive independent oil players, also sell bottled coco-biodiesel products in their respective selected gasoline refilling stations.

Palad said they are optimistic that more and more oil companies will see the benefit of promoting and selling coco-biodiesel products.

To increase awareness on the biodiesel benefits, Chemrez along with Flying V conducted a series of seminars for the past two weeks in Luzon.

"This is in preparation of the eventual rollout of B-1 (pre-blended biodiesel) product of Flying V in all of its 50 stations nationwide," Palad said.

Palad said they hope that Petron would do the same. "We would appreciate it very much if Petron, in support of government’s initiative to promote the use of alternative fuels in the transport sector, will carry the coco-biodiesel products in most or if not all of its stations," he said.

Next month, Palad said they would embark on a roadshow in every region in the country to introduce its biodiesel product to gasoline dealers and large industries.

"We will meet representatives from the industry like gas dealers and interested biodiesel dealers to introduce the product and its benefits to consumers and the country’s economy as a whole," he said.

He said so far, Chemrez has distribution units in all parts of the country except in Mindoro, Southern Panay, Palawan and islands of Negros.

"We will try to tap these markets soon through this roadshow," he said. 

At present, Chemrez is one of the largest producers of coco-biodiesel in the Philippines and in Asia. It recently inaugurated its P950 million biodiesel plant in Quezon City which will enable it to to produce 60 million liters capacity a year.