THE Department of Finance (DOF) said the impact of the drone attacks on Saudi Arabia's biggest oil production sites will not affect the Philippines.
Finance Undersecretary Karl Kendrcik Chua assured Wednesday, September 18, that the country has sufficient oil supply despite possible problems that might be encountered following the attacks in the Arab nation's two production facilities over the weekend.
"'Yung supply, bumalik na sa normal, according to the news that I read today. So if that is the case, then wala po tayong impact sa ating oil supply and there's no further action needed," Chua said in a press conference.
"So we just have to monitor that the supply that are coming from the Middle East are indeed adequate," he added.
On Saturday, September 14, Saudi Arabian Oil Company's (Aramco) oil plants, Albqaiq and Khurais, were damaged after drone attacks claimed by Iran-aligned Yemeni rebels.
The strikes on the state-owned oil company reportedly caused spikes in the prices of crude oil, as these disrupted about half of Saudi Arabia's production.
Following the attack, Aramco announced to reduce its output by 5.7 million barrels of crude oil and gas daily, clipping world supply by five percent.
Albay Representative Joey Salceda, who joined Chua in a media interview, warned local oil companies not to take advantage of the situation by raising pump prices of petroleum products.
"Actually ang panawagan diyan ay 'yung mga oil companies eh (The appeal for oil companies is) don't take advantage of the windfall kasi (because) some of the then are trying to price already their old investories in the new one," he said.
"They're trying to price them a lot. They're taking advantage of this parang (which appears to be) Philippine predisposition towards panic," he added.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Sunday, September 15, raised worry that the recent drone attacks on Saudi Arabia's oil facilities would "deeply" affect the Philippines.
But Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi on Monday, September 16, said it was "premature" to speculate on the attacks' possible impact on the Philippines' oil production.
On Tuesday, September 17, oil firms in the country raised pump prices of gasoline and diesel by P1.35 and 85 centavos per liter, respectively. (SunStar Philippines)