Bigtime gasoline rollback, higher Meralco billing possible

MMANILA — Motorists can expect a bigtime rollback on gasoline prices by Tuesday, as the Department of Energy confirmed the certainty of the price slash due to lower imported fuel prices.

Positive prospects for peace in the Middle East as well as the Delemocrats’ win in the midterm US elections pulled down prices for the entire week.

For the Philippines, a stronger peso against the US dollar also contributed to the dip in fuel prices.

Based on the first 4 trading days this week, gasoline is nearly P12/liter lower than last week’s:

Diesel         P4.95/L decrease

Gasoline    P11.75/L decrease

Kerosene   P3.87/L decrease

Independent player Cleanfuel jumped the gun on competition, as it announced a P4/liter rollback on gasoline and P1.50 for diesel starting Friday in anticipation of the bigtime price slash.

But DOE Director Rino Abad said rhat based on their own computation factoring in other cost components like premium, freight, insurance, etc., gasoline is now cheaper by around P14/liter and diesel and kerosene by around P5/liter.

If the price of gasoline goes down by P10/liter next week, retail prices will dip to around P70/liter level.

If the rollback in diesel is P5.00/liter, its price will go down to P80/liter level by next week.

But will the price reduction be sustained in the coming weeks? For industry players, the situation remains volatile as efforts to bring peace in the Middle East remains precarious.

This, even if both sides and other interested parties commit to continue diplomatic talks for now.

But motorists are still not content even with the bigtime rollback expected on gasoline.

DOE records show that diesel and gasoline prices hovered between P50-P60/liter in February 2026.

Now, diesel’s common price is around P93.50/liter in Metro Manila, while gasoline retails for around P87.70/liter.

This means current prices are still more than P30/liter higher than pre-war prices.

Meanwhile, Meralco Spokesman Joe Zaldarriaga said there is a possibility of a higher electricity rate in the November billing.

This is due to the peso’s depreciation against the US dollar before the October billing cut off, higher liquified natural gas prices–which fuel major suppliers of the utility–and the expected higher spot market prices.

The Energy Regulatory Commission-ordered refund will start in the November billing, but this could be offset by the distribution rate hike.

Meralco is set to announce the final adjustment in the middle of next week.