What is a petroleum company doing by setting up shop on a small paradise island with a fragile ecosystem?
For Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. and its retail group, the counterintuitive rationale for
setting up the first gasoline station on Boracay Island is “to protect its environment.”
While it sounds strange, it bears mentioning that the fuel needs of the booming Boracay economy are currently served through means that would make hardcore environmentalists sweat.
Local motorists get their fuel through sub-retailers who sell fuel in one-to-four-liter
containers, while commercial establishments get their fuel requirements directly from Caticlan in the mainland, and are stored in overhead tanks or 30-liter containers.
Under current practices, fuel is shipped to Boracay in barrels or plastic containers, which are
prone to accidental spillage.
The new Shell gasoline station, however, will change all this.
Under the new scheme, the dealer’s fuel tanker will be loaded on a roll-on, roll-off vessel from
Caticlan and will unload the fuel directly into the underground tanks of the station.
The benefits of this are a marked decrease in spillage and contamination of the environment, while
untoward incidents like fires and accidental ingestion from all points of contact will be
eliminated, due to the improved fuel handling system.
“By making fuel accessible on the island itself, Shell rectifies unsafe practices such as the
transport of fuel in beverage bottles and unprescribed containers,” the company said.
The Boracay service station has three underground fuel storage tanks capable of holding up to
48,000 liters of premium, diesel and regular gasoline.
As part of its commitment to preserve the environment of the island through its “Green Fuel
Systems,” the station is equipped with double-walled fiber glass tanks and pipelines, taking
extra
measures to protect the local environment and increasing the life span of the facilities.
The site is also fitted with a “continuous monitoring system,” which is armed to detect leaks
within the walls of the facilities. The site’s overflow prevention system automatically closes
the
tanks at a certain level to maintain optimum safety when the tanks are being refilled.
Shell Boracay is fitted with the company’s new look and visual identity, which likewise carries
along with it added benefits to the environment -- it consumes less energy due to the increased
use of white hues and changes in lighting fixtures.
According to the company, its Boracay station would also offer lubricants for the two-stroke
engines used by numerous tricycles on the island.
These lubricants would help reduce environmentally harmful tricycle engine emissions, Shell said.
Equally importantly, however, is the economic benefit that the Shell station will bring to the
Boracay economy in terms of reduced fuel costs, due in part to the economies of scale that bulk
shipment brings.
According to the company, diesel fuel sold at the gas station would cost as much as 2 percent less
than present prices on the island, while premium and regular gasoline prices would be cheaper by
as much as 5 percent.
“We are extremely excited to make our global commitment and heritage relevant for the everyday
Filipino motorist,” Shell’s Visayas district manager Randy del Valle said. “With the opening
of
Shell Boracay, we are not only helping our professional motorists go further, but we are also
helping the entire island progress even further.”
The Shell Boracay service station is in Sitio Angol in Manoc-Manoc village.
By Daxim Lucas, Philippine Daily Inquirer
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