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June 22, 2022

Balancing transparency, respect for trade secrets: Sen. Win Gatchalian weighs in on the proposed unbundling of petroleum product prices amid the continuous spike in fuel costs. Answering queries from members of the media Wednesday, June 22, 2022, Gatchalian opined that while price unbundling would not reduce global fuel prices, it would help prevent abuse by local gas stations that take advantage of the situation. At the same time, he said trade secrets of oil companies must be protected. "I agree with the transparency, that there should be transparency in terms of pricing, in terms of volume of oil companies; but we also have to respect their proprietary secrets and business transactions," the chairperson of the Committee on Energy said. "So we will balance transparency and also the proprietary information of oil companies," he added. Meanwhile, Gatchalian said he would also be looking for "efficient" solutions for lower middle-class Filipinos who, aside from low-income sectors, have been affected by the surging oil prices. (Albert Calvelo/Senate PRIB)

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