Over 7 billion liters of petroleum products dosed with official PH marker



By Betheena Unite, Manila Bulletin News

Marked petroleum products under the government’s anti-oil smuggling program reached more than 7.7 billion liters since September 2019 when the fuel marking program started to be implemented.

The Bureau of Customs said Thursday that it had dosed with official fuel marker a total of 7,705,434,076 liters of fuel products nationwide from September 2019 up to May 21.

Of the seven billion liters, a total of 135,441,776 liters of fuel products were marked during the period of quarantine restrictions.

The total marked fuels during the quarantine, according to the bureau, “manifests its unrelenting effort in implementing the fuel marking program and collecting the proper revenue that is essentially needed to support various assistance programs by the government in this time of crisis.”

Twenty petroleum companies in the country had their petroleum products dosed with official marker, complying to the government’s fuel marking program that aims to curb illegal importation of fuel.

Of the total volume of marked fuel, Luzon accounted for 76 percent while Mindanao accounted for 20 percent and Visayas for four percent.

The companies that participated in the program include Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation, Petron Corporation, Seaoil Philippines, Unioil Petroleum Philippines, Phoenix Petroleum Corporation, Chevron Philippines, Inc., Oilink International Bataan, Insular Oil Corporation, Total Philippines/Filoil, Jetti Petroleum, Inc., PTT Philippines Corp., Marubeni Corporation, Micro Dragon Petroleum Corporation, Warbucks Industries Corp., High Glory Subic International Logistics, ERA1 Petroleum Corporation, Golden Share Commerce and Trading, Inc., SL Gas, Jade Link Subic, Inc., and SL Harbor.

Spearheaded by the Department of Finance, Bureau of Customs, and Bureau of Internal Revenue, the Fuel Marking Program was officially launched in August 2019 with the intention of putting a halt to illegal importation, manufacturing, and other fraudulent activities relating to the use and sale of petroleum products in the country.

Under the program, marking of refined, manufactured, and imported gasoline, diesel, and kerosene, including those withdrawn from freeport zones to be used in the domestic market, has become mandatory.