Shell nixes Manila Bay depot proposal

MANILA, Philippines -  Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. said yesterday it is not contemplating on relocating its oil depot in the Manila Bay area.

Shell country chairman Edgar Chua said they would rather relocate in an area near their pipeline which runs from Batangas to Pandacan, Manila.

“If we are forced to leave Pandacan, we do not intend to relocate in the Manila Bay area but to move to an area near the pipeline,” he said.

For the meantime, he said they would want to stay put at the existing oil warehouse at Pandacan, Manila.

“Our intention is to stay in Pandacan but to continue to reduce the footprint of the depot as economic progress spreads out of Metro Manila,” he said.

Earlier, the Department of Energy said there is a proposal to put up a possible oil hub in the Manila Bay area.

Energy Undersecretary Jay Layug said there are proposals to build the oil warehouse for all petroleum players.

“Local and foreign investors are proposing to build the oil hub,” Layug said.

He said this hub would be somewhere in a reclaimed area in Manila Bay.

“There had been a lot of talks lately about an oil hub outside Pandacan. They’re looking at different areas, in Manila Bay, there are many areas. They’re going to reclaim the area and build an oil storage hub,” Layug said.

Also, it was pointed out that Petron Corp., now controlled by San Miguel Corp. (SMC), is not likely to be part of the oil hub as SMC has a different plan for its wholly-owned oil subsidiary. Petron is looking at a so-called tank farm at Manila North Harbour.

Petron, the country’s largest oil refiner, has already expressed willingness to move out of the Pandancan depot by 2016 due to “economic and business consideration.”

Layug said there are a number of investors who are “looking at the volume that all oil companies now have for storage, as well as those stored at Pandacan.”