21-07-08 Petron and Shell Philippines, the two largest oil companies in the Philippines, said that they would accede to a presidential request to reduce diesel prices by Peso 1.50/liter (12.6 cents/gallon). President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo had asked country's biggest oil players to implement the price rollback, in order to provide relief to consumers hit hard by energy price increases.
"We are responding to an appeal by the president to mitigate the impact of high diesel prices," a Petron official said.

The rollback follows the companies' announcement of a Peso 3.00/liter increase in diesel prices, the biggest increase in the price of diesel this year. That increase pushed the price of diesel to just a few centavos below P 59/liter ($ 5.03/gallon).
Arroyo's press secretary Jesus Dureza said that the price rollback "will go a long way in cushioning the impact of high fuel prices on the people, especially the poor."

He added that the administration hopes the decision of the two biggest oil players will encourage other companies operating in the country to follow.
Dureza said that following the diesel price increase announcement, the president had instructed executive secretary Eduardo Ermita and energy secretary Angelo Reyes to talk to officials of the two companies about the possibility of bringing down prices of fuel products, specifically diesel fuel, "in an effort to cushion or soften the impact of such a hefty increase."