Bacolod City – Amid the continuing fuel price increases and supply concerns that is also affecting the sugar industry, the national government has been urged to increase the country’s ethanol blend requirement from E10 (10 percent ethanol) to E15 (15 percent ethanol), as a practical measure to cushion fuel price hikes, avert possible fuel shortage, and provide relief to local sugar industry and the public.
Negros Occidental 5th district Rep.Emilio Bernardino Yulo III, vice chairperson of the House committee on Agriculture, said increasing the ethanol blend from E10 to E15 can create stronger domestic demand for sugarcane-based ethanol and provide a much needed market for sugar byproducts at a time when farmers are under tremendous pressure, and the general public is reeling from rising prices.
Republic Act No. 9367, or the Biofuels Act of 2006, mandates a minimum 10 percent bioethanol blend in gasoline fuel. Moving from E10 to E15 would raise the required ethanol component, temper gasoline prices, and expand demand for bioethanol derived from molasses.
Molasses is used to produce ethanol, a renewable biofuel that is blended with petroleum products.
According to the 2025 USDA Foreign Agricultural Service biofuels report, Philippine bioethanol is produced from sugarcane, primarily molasses, and nearly 80% of the country’s total molasses supply is already utilized for ethanol production.
As of March 2025, the Philippines has 14 accredited bioethanol plants with a combined installed capacity of 508 million liters per year, but the effective annual capacity was only about 396 million liters.
Yulo noted that while molasses prices have declined and the country’s ethanol plants have yet to fully maximize their production capacity, government intervention remains necessary to strengthen the local bioethanol industry.
The Negros solon called for incentives to expand ethanol production, particularly for fuel-grade ethanol rather than those intended for potable alcohol or cosmetic use, so that domestic supply may be increased in a manner that benefits sugarcane farmers and the general public alike.
In a statement, Yulo stressed that imported ethanol may also be allowed to augment domestic production, provided that it does not displace locally produced molasses.
He called on the Department of Energy, Department of Agriculture, Sugar Regulatory Administration, and other concerned agencies to jointly study the viability of E15 and ensure that any policy shift supports the full utilization of local ethanol plants and has safeguards sugarcane farmers and the public from any increase in ethanol demand.
“The goal is to ensure that the additional demand redounds to our local sugarcane farmers and benefits the general public. With strong domestic-sourcing priorities in place, an increase of fuel blend can help expand the market for locally produced ethanol and provide support to our sugar industry,” the representative added.
Fuel prices have risen due to geopolitical tensions and the resulting instability in world oil prices, which has placed additional pressure on consumers and the economy. (Gilbert Bayoran via tvds photo by tvds)