PNOC stores 329,505 barrels of diesel in Subic Bay Freeport
SUBIC Bay Freeport is home to the Philippine Coastal Storage and Pipeline Corporation which is the largest petroleum product import storage facility in the Philippines, The PCSPC, with a storage capacity of approximately 6.3 million barrels or roughly a billion liters of fuel, is able to store a significant portion — 20 percent — of the national buffer stock.
PHOTOGRAPH courtesy of SBMA
The Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC), has utilized Subic Bay Freeport to store 329,505 barrels of diesel to alleviate the oil crisis in the country.
Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority senior deputy administrator for Port Operations Ronnie Yambao said the shipment of PNOC's 329,505 barrels or 44,119 metric tons of diesel arrived in Subic Freeport on 10 April using the Philippine Coastal Storage and Pipeline Corporation as storage area for the said shipment.
He added that as of 30 March, the Bureau of Internal Revenue has issued a special permit to the PNOC Exploration Corporation to fast-track the emergency importation of petroleum products, including diesel, to stabilize the nation's energy supply.
Special permit
"The special permit is designed to bypass standard bureaucratic and customs delays to immediately import fuel," he said.
The PNOC Exploration Corporation is set to procure a total of two million barrels of oil and 22,000 metric tons of LPG to build a national buffer stock, aiming to mitigate oil price volatility and secure supply of fuel.
These emergency stocks, which represent about 10 days of additional fuel and strengthen LPG reserves, are being secured in response to Middle East market disruptions.