Group asks solons to block proposed LPG Safety Act

The Liquefied Petroleum Gas Refillers’ Association (LPGRA) yesterday asked senators to block the passage of House Bill No. 5052 or the proposed “LPG Safety Act.”

The measure is the counterpart of Senate Bill No. 721, a substitute bill drafted by the committee on trade and commerce in joint with the committee on energy during the 14th Congress, seeks to establish the monitoring and supervisory framework for the Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) industry in order to strengthen and enhance existing standards and mechanisms against deceptive and harmful practices and other hazards to public health and safety arising under a deregulated downstream oil industry structure.

LPGRA president Bernie Bolisay denounced the proposed measure, which is now at second reading in the House of Representatives, as “anti-consumer” as it allows the government to confiscate some six million supposedly dilapidated and substandard LPG cylinders.

He said this would result in the shortage of LPG cylinders and the possible manipulation by major oil companies.

Bolisay said the proposed measure adopts the position of big oil firms.

“The proposed measure only allows the oil majors to continue to dominate and control LPG market,” said Bolisay, adding that monopoly always hurts the end-user – the consumer.

If House Bill 5052 is passed, the purpose of which is to perpetuate the monopoly of major oil companies, Bolisay said consumers would be then denied their rights to choose cheaper and quality LPG, which would then result in incessant increases in the prices of LPG.

Bolisay also noted that the bill does not provide safety nets and subsidy for the confiscation and impounding of substandard and dilapidated cylinders owned mostly by the poor and marginalized sector.

He stressed, however, that the LPGRA is not opposed to re-qualification of LPG cylinders. But this should be done gradually so that consumers would not be affected by the sudden increase of LPG prices.

He said the affected LPG owners will be forced to purchase a brand-new LPG tank at a cost of P1,500 each, with an aggregate cost of P9 billion. The six million cylinders to be confiscated represent 50 percent of the 12 million in circulation in the market.

According to Bolisay, the eventual confiscation of these cylinders would result in the deprivation of six million household consumers because of shortage of LPG tanks.

“Aside from being left without LPG cylinders for cooking, those cylinders which they have purchased and now belong to them may no longer be refilled and exchanged for filled cylinders,” he added.

The three million cylinders for re-qualification will also be eventually scrapped because of a directive in the bill that the name of the brand owner be embossed or stamped on the cylinder.

Bolisay said such requirement in the proposed measure “is impractical and uneconomical, to say the least” and defeats the spirit of Oil Deregulation Law that promotes free trade. –Daily Tribune