Boycott the Big Four (Petron, Shell, Chevron, Total)= Cheaper Local Oil Prices?

[jpdm]

honga

pero sa palagay ko mas mabuti na barado ilong kesa sa barado utak. just because someone doesn't agree with you, doesn't mean that they are in the pocket of Big Oil. they may simply....just not agree with you.

wag ka rin sana magalit

Tama ka, bosing. Tamang tamang ka.

[jpdm]

Manila Bulletin
August 6, 2008

[SIZE=3]Strict audit of oil prices ordered [/SIZE] In the face of drop in world market
GMA orders strict DoE audit of oil, power companies

By GENALYN D. KABILING

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo yesterday ordered the Department of Energy (DoE) to launch a strict and intensive audit of oil and power companies and check whether their prices reflect the downtrend in global oil costs.

Presidential Management Staff chief Cerge Remonde said the President has expressed concern over the series of local oil price hikes when prices in the world market have started to plummet.


The order for a review of the finances of energy companies was issued by the President during the Cabinet meeting in Malacañang, Remonde said.


"We would like to announce that one of the major directives issued by President Arroyo during the Cabinet meeting was a directive addressed to the Department of Energy to do an intensive audit on oil and power companies, especially on the matter of cost recovery," Remonde said.


[SIZE=3]Remonde explained that the government audit of energy firms was "in response to the public clamor that government must be pro-active" in verifying if the local petroleum prices are justified, given the present world market conditions.[/SIZE]


[SIZE=3]"We know there is now elasticity in the movement of prices of oil in the world market. There are already downward movements in the past and yet despite this, there are some oil companies that continue to increase due to under-recovery.[/SIZE] The President has heard the cry of the consumers," he said.


He said the President wants to energy department to be "more strict" and "more intensive" in scrutinizing the books of the oil and power companies to determine whether their recent price increases are warranted.


Apart from the DoE, the Commission on Audit may be tapped to audit the energy companies to ensure transparency, Remonde added.


The government is also ready to file the necessary charges against energy firms found to be overpricing or profiteering from the volatile world oil prices.


[SIZE=3]"If there will be evidence that they are overpricing, the government has every moral authority, even legal, to impose upon them under the law," Remonde said.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Cabinet Secretary Silvestre Bello added that energy companies could face "not only administrative liabilities" but also "criminal prosecution" if they are found to have violated the law.[/SIZE]
Press Secretary Jesus Dureza said that the primary concern of the President is that Filipino consumers should benefit from the decreasing oil prices in the world market.
"The President wants, if there is going to be a reduction in the price of fuel in the international market,immediately this must be passed on to the consumers," he said.
[SIZE=3]The energy department has long conducted an audit of the books of oil companies, even seeking the help of top accounting firm SyCip Gorres Velayo & Co. (SGV). The government has kept confidential the audit report.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3][/SIZE]
Members of Congress have also called on the CoA to scrutinize the finances of the oil companies amid signs of [SIZE=3]alleged collusion in the pricing of their fuel products.[/SIZE]


Oil prices have fallen to near $ 120 a barrel as concerns over tight supplies eased amid rising OPEC output and declining US demand.
Light, sweet crude for September delivery fell $ 1.06 to $ 120.35 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange yesterday. The contract reportedly dropped $ 3.69 overnight to settle at $ 121.41 a barrel.

Questioning the oil companies is a legitimate concern. The DOE have already audited the oil companies but the public do not know the result because the government made their findings confidential.

Now, if DOE, ERC and COA found out that the oil companies are not profiteering, I have no more reason to question the right of oil companies as investors to earn justified profit for their business.

As producers seek ways to maximize their benefits, I think its just right for consumers to do so also to balance the needs of the two.

[jpdm]

[SIZE=2]Americans finger oil firms for gas runup[/SIZE][SIZE=2]

Americans see U.S. oil companies and foreign producers as key drivers of high gas prices. Congressional Democrats are not seen as a major cause. [/SIZE]

#yahooBuzzBadge-form{text-transform:uppercase;}
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Americans see big oil companies and overseas oil producers as the top culprits responsible for high gas prices, according to a poll released Thursday.
Based on telephone interviews with more than 1,000 adult Americans conducted in July, the CNN/Opinion Research poll found that 68% of respondents think U.S. oil companies are a major cause behind high gas prices.
The results come on the same day that Exxon Mobil (XOM, Fortune 500), the world's biggest publicly traded oil firm, reported the largest quarterly profit in U.S. history. (Full story).
A majority of Americans think that, after U.S. oil companies, foreign oil producers are driving gas prices higher. The poll found that 65% of respondents think overseas producers are a major factor.
Poll respondents also tabbed financial "speculators" (57%), rising demand from other countries like China and India (56%), Bush administration policies (54%), the war in Iraq (51%) and federal laws banning drilling in offshore and wilderness areas (51%).
On the other hand, only 31% of those polled think congressional Democrats are a significant cause of high gas prices - 43% termed the Democrats a minor cause, and 26% said they are not a cause at all.
"The opinion poll reflects a correct gut instinct by consumers," said Dr. Mark Cooper, research director of the Consumer Federation of America. Though he added that the situation is "more complex than that."
"OPEC and oil companies make outrageous profits," he said. And the relationship between the two contributes to an "upward spiral" in the crude market, which ultimately impacts the price of gas.

If your reeling from high oil prices, its but natural for people to blame first the oil companies.



But of course, they are not just the culprits.... as this article is saying....

[Monseratto]

May "whiners" awards ba?

:hysterical: :hysterical: :hysterical:


Umiikot pa rin ang usapan...:popcorn:

[jpdm]

What Causes High Gas Prices?May 24th, 2007 by imagery

Although there are many different things which contribute to high gasoline prices, the biggest reason for an increase in gasoline prices has to do with refining capacity.




Consolidation in the refining industry has limited our refining capabilities. The top five refiners now control more than half of the domestic refining capacity in the United States. Unfortunately, this has allowed the big refiners to tightly control gasoline reserves thus greatly affecting availability and prices. Is this bad? It depends. If they are deliberately reducing refining capabilities to reduce the amount of gasoline they produce, thus increasing their profit margins, then yeah … it is.

Without a competitive market the consumer will continue to suffer because there is no incentive for Big Oil to increase refining capacity when there is a shortage. Spending millions to construct new refineries to produce gasoline faster will only lower their profit margins.



Big Oil companies made multi-billion dollar profits in 2005 with Exxon Mobile leading the way by posting a profit of $36 billion dollars. Amazingly, in 2006 it beat that mark by earning $39.5 billion dollars on revenue of $377.6 billion dollars. Even more amazing is in 2007, they beat that mark for a $40+ billion dollar profit, more than any other company in US history.


Where does all this money go? Big Oil will tell you they are reinvesting the money into new drilling technologies and exploration.


However, ask Lee Raymond, ex-CEO of Exxon, who in 2006 received one of the most generous retirement packages in history, nearly $400 million in cash including pension, stock options and other perks, such as a $1 million consulting deal, two years of home security, personal security, a car and driver, and use of a corporate jet for professional purposes. All that money came from our pockets during 2005 when gasoline prices hit an all-time new high.



Where did all that money come from? It came out of yours and my pockets.



Instead of using that money to build new refineries, they gave it as bonuses, and salary increases. More of the money is being used to find more oil, but this won’t solve the problem.



This will do NOTHING to increase the refining capacity and will only make the problem worse. They did use some of the money to improve upon some of the older refineries, but this has had virtually no affect on their refining capacity, otherwise, we wouldn’t be setting new record highs on the price per gallon of gasoline.


The refining industry will say there’s no place to build new refineries. That communities proclaim the “not in my backyard” excuse, but this isn’t the case.



They are not interested in increasing their gasoline output because this would lower gasoline prices; thus cutting into their large profits.

Hmmm....interesting...

[uls]

Ibon is biased against the oil companies.

Ibon is a bunch of leftists.

Ibon is biased against capitalists. All capitalists.

Ibon is not a reliable source of information lalo na pag dating sa studies about the oil industry.

Baket bilib na bilib ang mga tao sa Ibon?

The media gave them publicity, lalo na ung pro-activist network na ABSCBN, that's how the study got to the news.

If those activists came out with a study about shape-shifting aliens in Malacanang, ABSCBN would cover it.

-----------------

Why oil price is high:

From a more reliable source: The Washington Post

not some blogger's opinion back in May 2007 (when oil was below $80)



----------

I don't rely on any local news articles. Local writers are biased against oil companies.

Politicians are biased against oil companies. They are populist. They are after votes. The will always take a popular stance.

If harassing oil companies will win them votes, they will do it. Actually, they ARE doing it.

The politicians cannot be counted on as a source of reliable info about the oil industry.

------------

For reliable oil industry news: http://www.platts.com/Oil/Resources/

[jpdm]

the politician really wants to eat the pie for himself/herself or
the politician realizes that his/her constituents are suffering so he's doing something about it.

or at least, if he can't talk some sense to the oil companies eh humingi/kotongan na lang sa kanila for the suffering people.

for the media, two things also:

ratings. no need to explain further
or the media is just being sympathetic to the people ... and capitalize on it like they are knights in shining armor.

The Government and Media were never built to serve business interests to begin with. they are for the people or its citizens above all. I hope you understand this bago pa i-accept natin na lahat na business above all.

[SIZE=3]if we are to prioritize business over people then we should be run by a Corporation not a Government. we all know naman what will happen if Corporations run a country[/SIZE].

Agree here.

At least this arguments talk about two distinct possibilities.

Hindi puro pro-business stance.

Hindi komo nagreklamo against oil companies, anti-business na.

I dont see anything wrong when the government heed the public's clamor.

And Its ok to protect business interest but there is a need to protect also the right of the consumers.

[jpdm]

Ibon is biased against the oil companies.

Ibon is a bunch of leftists.

Ibon is biased against capitalists. All capitalists.

Ibon is not a reliable source of information lalo na pag dating sa studies about the oil industry.

Baket bilib na bilib ang mga tao sa Ibon?

The media gave them publicity, lalo na ung pro-activist network na ABSCBN, that's how the study got to the news.

If those activists came out with a study about shape-shifting aliens in Malacanang, ABSCBN would cover it.

-----------------

Why oil price is high:

[SIZE=2]I don't rely on any local news articles. Local writers are biased against oil companies. [/SIZE]

Politicians are biased against oil companies. They are populist. They are after votes. The will always take a popular stance.

If harassing oil companies will win them votes, they will do it. Actually, they ARE doing it.

The politicians cannot be counted on as a source of reliable info about the oil industry.

And what's reliable-- your info, your opinion, your references?

Masyado ka rin bias, yung sa yo lang tama.

As if your opinion is beyond scrutiny.

As if your basis are infallible.

As if the Washington Post is a bible.

Pardon me, masyado kang pro-business. Puro capitalist bukang bibig mo.

Bawasan mo ng konti.See at least the other side. Bumaba ka naman sa ivory tower mo.

Your statements reek with political bigotry--leftists, activists( not all are leftists. they can be rightists, centrists etc.)--kung di rin sa mga iyan we will not enjoy the fruits of Edsa I and Edsa II. Tsaka akala ko modern at cosmopolitan na Pinas at mundo and people should not be discriminated because of their political beliefs....

[theveed]

This is friggin pointless and going around in circles... it's like debating with Soriano... Closing the thread.

[nicolodeon]

Theveed beat me by minutes. I was also about to close this thread as this theread has become a carousel ride: same wooden horse going up, down and in circles.

Here's my take:

Information presented here coming from media releases, sari-sari store flyers or from a paper stuck the bottom of your shoe can be considered [SIZE="3"]2nd hand information[/SIZE]. Why? Not unless you have talked to the devil himself then verified the information, information presented from those sources can't be considered 1st hand.

Also, the ideas, thoughts, arguments presented here are opinions and unless anybody higher than you/us comes in here and points out whose right or wrong then the statements written in this thread would remain your opinion. If anyone disagrees, live with it.

If nobody believes they should boycott gas stations, does/doesn't believe that populism is being practiced, does/doesn't believe that companies are profiteering or does/does'nt believe that there is a collusion between oil companies, then let it be. For those of you who want to join the boycott, eat your heart out - start boycotting now. For those of you who're leaning on either that profiteering scheme, or that collusion scheme: go out, research, get the facts yourself and present it to authorities. In other words, don't just talk the talk: walk the walk.

Now, let me just dig a sec into this boycott thing. Suppose you are an strong and passionate advocate of boycotting the Big Three. One day, you find yourself driving along a lonely highway with your gas gauge on "E" and the only gas station within miles is one of the Big Three. Question: would you stick with your principle and boycott, or would you gas up? Chances are, you'd gas up. So if you do, then you'd break your "boycott principle". If you won't, either you'd wind up walking miles to find your "friendly" gas station or you'll be pushing your 1-ton vehicle until your balls give way.

Bottom line is: you have a car/automobile/motorbike, you need petrol/gas/diesel. If you can live without your car, do like what many Japanese are doing lately: give up your vehicle and join in the ranks of commuters. If you can't, live with it - gas prices are high and unless your Prince Saud, you can't do anything directly about it.