Fuel prices are expected to rise further, the Department of Energy (DOE) said Tuesday.

Oil firms increased diesel prices by P1.50 per liter and gasoline by P1.90 per liter on Tuesday.

As a result, gasoline prices have risen to P11.50 per liter in the last six weeks while diesel prices went up by P7.10 per liter, the fifth straight week for gasoline.

In an interview with dzBB, Oil Industry Management Bureau Director Rino Abad said he does not see a possibility of a rollback of pump prices in September.

“We don’t see any event that could offset this situation that was caused by the OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) Plus…The truth is, from January to May we were able to monitor that oversupply of oil, so that’s why we were able to implement several rollbacks during that time,” Abad said.

“So because of what the OPEC Plus did in June, July, and August, we don’t see anything that will change especially in September, but let’s wait,” he added.

Abad said the oil price hikes were due to Saudi Arabia reducing its oil production by one million barrels per day. Jaspearl Tan/DMS