Aramco Eyes Oil Export Hub in Bataan

Saudi Arabia's Aramco is considering establishing an oil export hub in Bataan, Philippines. According to the Department of Energy (DOE), this would be a private facility owned by Aramco, not the government.

The proposed site in Bataan is owned by state-run Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC) and is near the Petron refinery. The DOE has identified the area as suitable for an oil storage facility that could supply both domestic use and export markets.

Aramco plans to build a storage facility where crude oil will be stored for export and domestic use, with local refineries also expected to buy from it. This is part of the country's national oil stockpiling program, which aims to have a 15-million-barrel reserve in Bataan.

The DOE has estimated that building such a system would require around P5 billion and could be completed by the end of 2026, based on their latest data. As of September 4, the country's fuel supply was expected to last for 53 days, with an estimated 500,000 to 1 million barrels required.