Visayas, particularly its key cities, has normal level of liquefied petroleum gas supply, an official of the Department of Energy said.

Director for Visayas Antonio Labios, who was in Iloilo City yesterday for a power supply consultation,  said the LPG stocks in Visayan cities are within the inventory level, and the DOE has not received  complaints of LPG shortage.

“Based on our monitoring, we could still say that the situation is normal,” he said, adding that the price of an 11- kilogram cylinder tank in Western Visayas is lower than the Cebu rate.

Labios said the increasing LPG prices is a result of   the increased demand abroad as LPG is one of the major fuels for heating purposes in Western countries.

Meanwhile, Malacañang yesterday appealed to LPG dealers and suppliers to suspend any price increase.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said those engaged in the LPG business should consider the welfare of consumers amid the global economic crisis.

Petron Corp. has increased by P4 per kilogram on Monday while Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp., the same amount “due to higher acquisition cost of latest LPG imports.”

Ermita said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is assuring the public that there is no shortage and that there is adequate supply of LPG.

The LPG supply has started to normalize with the arrival of stocks from abroad, he said.*NLG

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