DOE to seek temporary opening of FPIC pipeline

By Donnabelle L. Gatdula (The Philippine Star) Updated December 16, 2010

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Energy (DOE), through First Philippine Industrial Corp. (FPIC), will ask permission from the Supreme Court to temporarily reopen the oil pipeline to pave the way for the conduct of a pressure test.

Energy Undersecretary Jay Layug said the pressure test would be the last phase in a series of tests on the FPIC pipeline to determine its readiness to resume operations.

According to Layug, the DOE could not directly ask permission from the High Tribunal as it is not privy to the court case.

The pressure test, he said, is part of the recommendation of the foreign expert hired by FPIC to conduct surveying and testing on its pipelines to ensure the integrity of the facility after small leaks were discovered in the Makati area.

Energy Secretary Jose Almendras said the pressure test is a crucial component of the repair works. “They are going to divide the pipe into segments and they’re going to put pressure into it and check whether there is a leak or not.”

Amid the near completion of the tests, Almendras remained wary of the impact of the pipeline’s closure on petroleum supply in the metropolis.

He said the oil supply in Metro Manila is “still bad” because around 40 retail stations of Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. have already closed down.

“I don’t know how bad it will get, some stations sell just diesel only,” Almendras said,

Two of the country’s biggest oil companies, Shell and Chevron, use the FPIC pipeline in transporting their fuel products from Batangas to Pandacan in Manila.

Due to the discovered leaks, the pipeline has been shut down since late October upon orders of the Supreme Court.

CH2M Hill, the US-based environmental remediation company engaged by FPIC to help in the cleanup of the oil leak, for its part, is expected to finish the drilling of the 20 monitoring wells before Christmas.

The drilling of these wells is part of the remediation strategy for the Bangkal cleanup of the leak caused by the pipeline.