The Commission on Audit (COA) has questioned the province of Nueva Vizcaya for its "immoderate" P14.3 million worth of fuel consumed by its heavy equipment in 2022. In its audit report, COA said the fuel consumption was not properly controlled, accounted, and monitored. It said that Nueva Vizcaya’s Provincial Engineering Office (PEO) consumed 271,669 liters of fuel worth P14,313,616.35 based on the Review of the Monthly Fuel Consumption Reports for 2022 which were prepared and submitted regularly by the Provincial General Services Office (PGSO).). At first glance, the COA said that the total fuel consumption for the year seemed "immoderate." When the audit team conducted observation and verification, it learned that the PEO buys gasoline and fuel in bulk then stores it in drums for the operation of heavy equipment, it said. "It was found out that fuel issued by the PEO for the consumption of dump trucks were beyond their tank capacity and the excess fuel was stored in containers/drums," the COA said. When the audit team reviewed the disbursement vouchers related to the said transactions, COA said it discovered that the Driver's Trip Tickets were not serially numbered. There was also non-submission of the Monthly Utilization Reports of their heavy equipment, it said. "Non-preparation and non-submission of the said necessary reports and documents undermines the audit and shows that fuel consumption for heavy equipment was not effectively controlled and properly accounted for or regulated by the PEO, thus increasing the risk of wasteful, excessive, and unnecessary fuel consumption," it also said. Citing an example, COA said that fuel for heavy equipment amounting to P1.679 million was "unreasonably consumed" and the utilization of 1,750 liters of fuel was inaccurately reported. Also, it said that there were even duplicate reportings of utilization for dump trucks and road rollers which resulted in "excessive and impracticable" fuel utilization. "All equipment were outrageously reported operating seven to eight hours a day, which is highly improbable," it also said. It then tasked Nueva Vizcaya’s PEO to provide justification as to why there are discrepancies in the reports and to spearhead an investigation to determine any "excessive, unnecessary, and irregular" consumption of fuel for heavy equipment. Should anyone be found at fault, the COA said that administrative sanctions must be imposed. It said the provincial officials have assured that they will comply with the recommendations and will determine any irregularities in the reporting of fuel consumption.