The Department of Energy (DOE), Maharlika Investment Corporation, and the Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC) are working on a program to build government-owned petroleum storage facilities that could hold crude oil, diesel, or gasoline.

The planned tanks would form the basis of a strategic national petroleum reserve aimed at giving the country an additional fuel buffer during supply disruptions and periods of global market volatility.

Energy Secretary Sharon S. Garin said the government currently relies on petroleum inventories stored in private-sector facilities and does not have tanks of its own.

“We don’t have an inventory, we don’t have a tank, but we have private ones,” Garin said during a DOE virtual press conference on July 20.

She estimated that the country currently has around 40 to 50 days of petroleum reserves, but said the government wants to add its own stocks through the proposed storage facilities.

“PNOC, Maharlika, and DOE are working on a program where the government will build its own tank so that we can store crude oil or diesel or gasoline,” Garin said.

The project may initially be developed on a smaller scale before being expanded over time due to the expected cost of constructing petroleum storage infrastructure.

“The objective is we will have our strategic national reserve also,” Garin added.

The DOE said its partnership with Maharlika is progressing, with the elements needed to begin developing the storage tanks being assembled. Several public and private entities have also expressed interest in participating in the initiative.

The department has yet to disclose the proposed reserve’s location, storage capacity, investment cost, development structure, or construction timetable.

The initiative is being advanced amidst continued instability in the Middle East and the Philippines’ heavy dependence on imported petroleum. Garin said more than 80% of the country’s imported fuel comes from the region.

The DOE is also encouraging private companies to expand and distribute their storage facilities across more locations to strengthen domestic fuel security.

Proposals in Congress for a national petroleum reserve are likewise being pursued, although the department did not identify a specific bill or legislative timetable during the briefing.

Can the DOE, Maharlika, and PNOC turn the planned storage facilities into a strategic petroleum reserve capable of protecting the Philippines from future supply disruptions?

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