MANILA, Philippines — Oil refining and marketing giant Petron Corp. has started fuel marking at its facilities in support of the government’s efforts to curb smuggling.
Petron’s Bataan facility, which has a 180,000 barrel-per-day maximum capacity, is the largest refinery in the Philippines, supplying nearly a third of the country’s fuel demand.
The oil firm also commenced fuel marking at its import facility in Misamis Oriental end-2019.
“These developments in our facilities testify to our firm commitment to support the government in their fight against smuggling. We also continue to work with their fuel marking team for the installation of the automatic injection system (AIS) in our refinery,” Petron president and chief executive officer Ramon Ang said.
Echoing the sentiments of other Philippine Institute of Petroleum (PIP) members, Petron has consistently expressed its support for the fuel marking program provided that it is enforced on a level playing field.
Since 2018, Petron has been in close coordination with concerned government agencies, namely the Department of Finance, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), and the Bureau of Customs.
“We are optimistic that the fuel marking program will significantly address fuel smuggling, which has been a constant deterrent to the continued growth of our economy. Consumers also stand to gain once everyone gets on board as it will ensure that all fuel products in the market will be legitimately sourced,” Ang said.
PIP believes fuel marking will address the shortfall in revenue collection provided that it is done on a level playing field.
Prior to the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Act, the government lost approximately P40 billion in government revenues due to petroleum smuggling according to various independent studies.
The fuel marking program aims to plug revenue leakages from oil smuggling by placing a molecular marker on imported, manufactured and refined fuel products such as gasoline, diesel and kerosene.
The BOC has required all fuel companies to comply with the fuel marking program by Feb. 3, six months after the measure was launched.
By then, authorities will start testing all petroleum products found in the domestic market – including those in storage tanks, depots and terminal facilities.