Shell sets P800-M capex for 2002

Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. will allocate some P800 million for capital expenditures this year, a ranking company official said.

Shell country chairman Eliseo Santiago, in an interview, said they intend to keep the level of its capex despite the continuing slowdown in the domestic economy.

"We need to invest for our capex though there is an existing lower demand in the market," Santiago said. In 2001, the company also spent P800 million on capital expenditures.

Santiago said the bulk of this year’s capex will be allotted to finance the construction of additional service stations.

"We will build new stations. There would be no major investment aside from this," he said, adding that they are planning to put up at least 10 more service stations all over the country. Thus far, he said, the company has built four service stations.

Shell is the local subsidiary of Royal Dutch/Shell Group, which operates in more than 135 countries around the world. The group started its corporate presence and operations in the Philippines in 1914 as a distributor of kerosene products.

Over the years, Shell in the Philippines has evolved into a group of companies engaged in different core businesses, namely, exploration and production, gas and power, oil products, chemicals, and renewables.

Shell has one fuel refinery in Tabangao, one lubricating baseoil refinery in Pililla, 29 installations and depots, one refrigerated LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) terminal, six LPG plants, and some 1,000 retail service stations spread throughout the country.

Aside from Shell Petroleum, the group also operates Shell Gas Eastern Inc., Pilipinas Shell Foundation Inc., Shell Philippines Exploration B.V. (Spex) and Shell Renewables Philippines Corp.

Shell recorded a net income of some P2.5 billion in 2001. The company hopes to achieve the same level of performance this year. – Donnabelle Gatdula