Government renews energy conservation efforts
Roxas City -- The Department of Energy (DOE) has renewed efforts towards energy conservation to minimize the effects of soaring oil prices on the country.
"It is important that the people feel the situation, a crisis that is looming, and that we have to address it together," the DOE said in a dispatch, as it called on consumers, transport sector and industries alike to implement various energy conservation measures.
Earlier, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has also ordered concerned government agencies to come up with measures that cushion the impact of the oil price hike such as the higher prices of basic commodities.
"The country is not yet in crisis, but may get there unless something significant or effective is being done," said a Malacañang statement about the rising prices of oil.
President Arroyo has also convened her cabinet to discuss the continuing rise in the prices of oil in the world market and its impact on the local market.
So far, the country is shielded from the effects of the rising oil prices by the present strength of the Philippine peso but it could face a crisis that includes runaway inflation, loss of competitiveness, productivity and jobs without immediate government and public action, the dispatch stated.
Oil prices jumped to a new trading record above $98 a barrel last November 7 due to strong demand, limited surplus capacity, falling inventories and geopolitical concerns. Price of crude oil is expected to hit $100 a barrel in the coming weeks until the end of December 2007 due to the winter season in the western hemisphere, the higher-than-expected inventory drawdown in the United States, and a weak dollar.
The latest round of oil price hikes carries wide-ranging effects on the economy and will incur greater damage among small entrepreneurs and low-income earners, who cannot cope with rising prices of consumer goods. (PIA)