Shell hikes prices by 37¢ per liter

Pilipinas Shell Petroleum raised anew yesterday its fuel prices by an average of 37 centavos per liter, with other industry players expected to follow suit.

Shell vice president for corporate affairs Reynaldo Gamboa said the new price schedule was based on the crude oil price average of $25.70 per barrel and the current foreign exchange rate of P52.33 to $1.

Two weeks ago, Shell was reportedly considering a 90-centavo price adjustment to be implemented on a staggered basis, meant to cover the May and June price increases which were postponed due to the elections.

Gamboa said "smaller but more frequent price changes" were in deference to the socio-political, economic and competitive market environments.

Energy Secretary Vincent Perez said the scheme would be "less shocking" to the public.

Gamboa hinted that the next price increase may come within weeks.

"Shell hopes that the current crude oil price and peso-dollar exchange rate stabilize so that present pump prices (will) hold in the coming weeks," he said.

In line with the deregulation law, service stations will still have the prerogative to set their respective pump prices "depending on the condition of individual trading areas."

A memorandum order issued by the energy department on May 25 required oil companies to inform the agency about their price adjustments one day before implementation.

It was not known if Shell complied with this requirement regarding the 37-centavo price change.

"As a regulator, we don’t want to be caught unaware of the price adjustments," Perez said.

Shell insisted, however, that there was no need to do so under a deregulated setup.