Petropolitik, Sapian and China 7

Petropolitik, Sapian and China - Seventh in a Continuing Series

Then, an important aspect of this series on Sapian, China, and petropolitik is oil deregulation. In theory, it allowed any company to operate in the downstream oil industry. Of course, we do not have upstream oil industry to speak of. But this paved the way for the organization of 14 new players (e.g., Eastern, Shale Oil, Flying V, etc.) and arrival of French Elf Aquitaine and Total, and American company known as Coastal Petroleum. http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online…es/CC/doc5.html

In addition to being a staff support to regular Cabinet Meetings, I also supported Cabinet Cluster on Energy (Cluster D). Policies on energy, including oil deregulation, price increases, etc., are regularly discussed, before directions are issued to the Energy Regulator Board. My brush with small time oil interests started when our cousin won as mayor of Tangalan, Aklan and came to Manila to explore for projects. We had a small network in the FVR Malacanang partly because former Presidential Counsel Antonio Tirol Carpio’s (now, a Supreme Court Justice) mother is from Tangalan and Boracay, and relative of Nong Liling Tirol of Majanlud and Bilao. FVR’s biographer Jojo Terencio is from Makato, plus the network of retired General Federico Ruiz. In any case, Mayor Francisco, whom I later brought to Toto Wally and Shirley Martinez house in Angkin on one New Year’s Eve on our way home from a rock crusher intended to supply quarry rocks to PhilEstate in Boracay, introduced me to Shell oil barge contractors. He used to work in Shell and had contacts with Shell tanker barge contractors. These contractors are also connected to the late Senator Robert Barbers in many ways. With that group, I saw Nong Richard Jamora, son of Auntie Titay, who is a Manager in Shell Tank Farm in Pandacan. Later, I would draft letters to Nong Richard on behalf of these interests pleading leniency for the petroleum safety violations or delivery shortfalls.

Coastal Petroleum, a Houston, Texas based company, contracted the use of underground petroleum storage in Subic Naval Base. The storage facility has a capacity of 2.4 million barrels, or worth over one week of total national consumption. My friends would later have transport services and distribution/trading contract with Subic Coastal.