Pilipinas Shell starts phasing out LPG storage spheres in Pandacan

To slowly phase down its operation in the Pandacan depot, Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. reported yesterday that it had decommisioned and gas-freed two of its three liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) storage spheres in the said facility.

Eliseo Santiago, Shell country chairman, said with the decommissioning process, the company will completely shutdown its LPG filling operations in Pandacan next year. Shell, which occupies one third or about 10.5 hectares of the 30 hectare-oil depot in Pandacan, said it is currently firming up alternative LPG supply options in order to ensure the continued high level of service to its LPG customers. "We take safety and security in all our operations, including its impact to the community, seriously as demonstrated by the Shell Pandacan installation’s long history of safe operations," Santiago said.

Aside from this, Santiago said the initial phase down plan of the Pandacan installation would also include creating an additional safety and "green" buffer zone that will benefit the communities around the areas. He said the Pandacan installation is currently the major supply point of Shell for Metro Manila and a greater part of Luzon, the facility is a strategic source of petroleum products such as gasoline, diesel oil, kerosene, fuel oil, aviation fuel, LPG, lubricants, chemicals, and specialty products for motorists, households, commercial and industrial establishments, including the transport, manufacturing, marine, aviation and power sectors.

Petron Corp. last week announced that it will also be phasing down its operation in Pandacan. But the country’s market leader and largest oil refiner refused to give details on how they will go about the said phase down process. Caltex Philippines Inc., on the other hand, is not ready yet to issue any statement on the moves of Petron and Shell. The three oil companies, occupying the said depot, are under pressure to relocate as the Manila City Council has threatened not to renew their licenses, which will expire by the middle of this month.

But the oil majors have argued that transferring the facility to other area on or before June this year will not be feasible if not close to impossible.