(Ali Vicoy/ MANILA BULLETIN)

Bayan Muna is pushing for the immediate implementation of oil price unbundling to assert transparency as oil prices are expected to face another round of increases during the Christmas season.

"The price of fuel in gas stations consists of international price, local cost, and net profit. Oil companies do not unbundle and divulge the details of their local cost, making it difficult for the public to see their overcharges in price per liter here,” said former Bayan Muna Party-list Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate in a statement on Monday, Dec. 23.

Zarate emphasized that there seemed to be a double standard in price transparency requirements. He noted that Meralco has long been required to unbundle its electricity rates.

“Ang presyo ng krudo hindi unbundled, kaya madali lang mag-overcharge pag tumaas ang international price,” he added.

(The price of crude oil is not unbundled, so it's easy to overcharge when the international price goes up.)

The Department of Energy (DOE) reported that price increases will be implemented on Dec. 24. The hikes range from P0.35 to P1.40 per liter for gasoline, diesel, and kerosene.

The agency also announced earlier that it will begin the process of unbundling oil prices by January 2025.

As such, oil companies would be required to disclose details of their price adjustments with corresponding explanations and supporting documents. 

The DOE issued this order in 2019 but was met with legal challenges from oil players. However, in September, the Supreme Court (SC) ruled to affirm the agency’s authority to monitor and regulate pricing data.

Zarate pointed out that Republic Act (RA) No. 8479, or the Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act of 1998, has long granted the DOE the authority to investigate oil industry practices.

"For more than 20 years after the oil deregulation law, the government does not know the actual cost of fuel and is therefore not capable of determining predatory pricing or overpricing. This is the tragic folly of deregulation,” he said.

The former congressman stressed that oil companies must always inform the DOE and the public of their actual costs. He said details should range from refining, storage, transportation, to operating expenses. 

“Transparency is crucial, especially now when every centavo counts in the shrinking budget of consumers," he noted.

Zarate, a member of the Makabayan coalition, said Congress can do its part in unbundling oil prices by fast-tracking the passage of House Bill (HB) No. 3004.

Authored by Makabayan lawmakers, the bill aims to make the oil pricing processes transparent to consumers.