Rodriguez, chairman of the Committee on Economic Development, has invited representatives from the island’s fuel companies to a roundtable meeting to discuss rising gasoline prices and the impact these increases are having on Guam residents.
Gennaro Cioffi, president of Mobil Oil Guam, Seung Yee Hahn, president of South Pacific Petroleum Company, and Jose Ricardo Delgado, chief executive officer of IP&E (Shell), have been asked to engage in a public dialogue with members of the committee.
In a recent letter to fuel company executives, Rodriguez wrote, “The issue of rising fuel costs and the impact upon us is a community concern, which must, at the very least, be clarified by the industry.”
The roundtable meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, May 31 at 2 p.m. in the Legislature’s public hearing room.
Rodriguez hopes the discussion will address the nature of gas prices, the national and international forces that affect rising prices, and the possibilities of a reprieve at the pump.
“Guam, with its high dependency on fossil fuels and purportedly limited options, is hard-pressed to find alternatives to these exorbitant fuel prices imposed upon us,” Rodriguez said.
“I also want to know when our people can expect to see the decrease in gas prices at the pump. There are media reports that gas prices in Asia, as well as Hawaii, are starting to experience the rollback of gas prices. We need to know when we can expect that price rollback here on Guam as well.”
Rodriguez further noted in his letter that motorists are “given virtually no advance notice of price increases,” and “the issue remains vague and convoluted, with little clarity being provided by the petroleum industry.”
The senator’s office is still awaiting confirmation of participation from Guam’s fuel companies.
