Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. is shutting down its refinery in Tabangao, Batangas for a month starting mid-May due to lower fuel demand during the quarantine period.
The company will switch to full importation of petroleum products to ensure “continuous and cost-effective supply of high-quality fuels to the country,” it said in a regulatory disclosure.
The Tabangao refinery will jointly operate with Pilipinas Shell’s Northern Mindanao Import Facility (NMIF) as import terminals to ensure uninterrupted supply of fuels.
Pilipinas Shell said the refinery’s temporary shutdown will help insulate the company from further potential drops in refining margins and will also aid in its cash conservation initiatives.
The downtime will be used as an opportunity to conduct proactive maintenance activities in the refinery, it said.
The refinery will retain the flexibility to restart immediately should market and demand conditions improve.
Pilipinas Shell distributes refined and imported petroleum products through its 27 fuel distribution terminals, 10 lubricants warehouses, and two bitumen import facilities throughout the Philippines.
Photo courtesy of Pilipinas Shell
