Maharlika Investment Corporation (MIC), the state-owned corporation that manages the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF), has entered into a financing agreement with Petron Corporation, opening a short-term revolving credit facility of up to PHP 15 billion aimed at strengthening the Philippines’ fuel security and supporting broader economic resilience.

Under the arrangement, the facility will provide working capital support for fuel procurement needs, particularly the importation and purchase of crude oil and refined petroleum products. The funding is also intended to help ease liquidity pressures tied to inventory management in a volatile global oil market.

For Petron Corporation, the country’s sole oil refiner and a major fuel distributor, the facility adds flexibility to its existing financing mix as it manages crude inventory levels and ensures steady supply across downstream operations serving households, transport, and industry.

MIC said the credit line reflects its mandate to channel capital into strategic sectors critical to national development, particularly those tied to essential infrastructure and supply chains.

“The price of oil has risen to the point where distribution companies must double their working capital just to buy the same amount of fuel,” said MIC President and Chief Executive Officer Rafael D. Consing Jr. “This facility allows MIC to support fuel supply stability while deploying capital in a sector that is essential to the economy.”

MIC said the transaction is structured as a revolving credit facility that Petron may draw from as needed, subject to use solely for crude oil and refined product purchases and related working capital requirements.

How significant is this kind of state-linked financing in stabilizing fuel supply chains in the Philippines, and could similar facilities reshape liquidity dynamics across the downstream oil sector?

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