At A Glance
- Senator Imee Marcos has filed a measure mandating the unbundling and disclosure of petroleum prices to encourage fair and efficient pricing amid the continuous oil price hike.
A MOTORIST refuels in a gasoline station in Iloilo City. (Tara Yap)
Senator Imee Marcos has filed a measure mandating the unbundling and disclosure of petroleum prices to encourage fair and efficient pricing amid the continuous oil price hike.
Marcos, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Social Justice, Welfare and Rural Development, filed Senate Bill No. 2007 or the Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act of 1998 to liberalize the industry to promote competition as well as ensure a steady and sufficient pricing.said that recent geopolitical developments have exposed structural gaps in the industry.
"While deregulation promotes market efficiency, it does not adequatelyaddress information asymmetry in petroleum pricing," Marcos said in her explanatory note.
"In periods of extreme volatility, the absence of mandatory price unbundling prevents both regulators and consumers from determining whether domestic price adjustments accurately reflect global cost movements or include unwarranted margins," she added.
According to the measure, oil companies are required to unbundle their prices—from actual expenses in purchasing fuel, its distribution, the process refining, the tax generated and income.
The companies must disclose these at the gasoline stations as well as through online platforms and submit such information to the Department of Energy (DOE).
They must also issue advisories about their price hike seven days prior to its implementation.
“Hindi puwedeng hulaan lang natin kung bakit ganyan kamahal ang gasolina. Karapatan ng mamimili malaman ang buong kuwenta, hanggang sa huling sentimo (We cannot simply speculate on the reasons behind high fuel prices. Consumers deserve to know the complete breakdown, to the very last centavo),” Marcos said.
“Kung may dagdag-singil, dapat may malinaw na basehan. Kung may pagtaas, dapat may paliwanag—hindi puro anunsyo na walang konkretong detalye (Any price hike must have a clear justification. Every increase requires an explanation—not just mere announcements lacking in concrete detail),” she added.