Gov’t lowers tariff on 11 petrochem products

President Arroyo has reportedly signed the Executive Order (EO) lowering the tariff on 11 petrochemical products.

Both Budget Secretary Romulo Neri and Trade and Industry Secretary Peter B. Favila said that the President had signed several EOs that may have included the petrochem EO.

However, until the EO is officially released by Malacañang, they cannot categorically confirm the EO.

The downstream plastics industry has been awaiting the signing of the EO since November last year.

Last minute lobbying by the Gokongwei Group has been cited as the reason for the delay in the signing of the petrochem EO.

In fact, the Association of Petrochemical Manufacturers of the Philippines (APMP) attempted a last ditch legal move to derail the signing by filing a mandamus against the Cabinet-level Tariff and Related Matters (CTRM) and several government agencies seeking the release of the minutes of the May 23, 2005 deliberations of the CTRM on the petrochem issue.

The APMP also sought P500,000 for its legal expenses.

The APMP move has disappointed Trade and Industry Secretary Peter B. Favila who is now urging JG Summit Petrochemical Corp. (JGSPC) to finally break ground on its long-promised naphtha cracker project.