The Federation of Philippine Industries (FPI) is pushing for socialized pricing schemes for petroleum products to insulate the mass consumers from the expected surge in prices, especially in the calamity-ravaged areas, with the lifting of the price ceiling.

FPI president Jesus L. Arranza said he will make a proposal to Malacañang outlining the group’s concepts, which, of course, are open for refinements.

For liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), Arranza said the 11-kilogram and below cylinders should be subjected to price caps to shield the households from increases.

And to help the LPG suppliers recover costs, they should be allowed to impose higher prices on the bigger cylinders that are being used by industrial and institutional buyers such as hotels and restaurants.

In turn, the institutional users can spread the additional costs to their products, making the increase hardly noticeable.

“Restaurants, for example, can spread the increase in its LPG cost to their products without the consumers feeling it because the adjustment per plate or order, should there be any, will just be very minimal,” Arranza said.