The Editor, Sir:

What is the purpose of having an oil refinery in the country if there is no benefit to be gained from its existence?

OK, it provides jobs for the population, but at what cost? How is it that Petrojam uses the US Gulf reference price when it suits it for refined oil and the world market crude prices on other occasions when it feels a mind?

Does Petrojam purchase crude oil, and what does it do with the crude? How does the country benefit from the operation of the refinery if the costs of production locally is not factored in the price to the distributive trade?

Explanation needed

Maybe we should just import refined oil from trinidad. Petro-jam's defence of its prices by stating that JPS buys oil from it on the basis of a competitive bid is ridiculous for the simple reason that JPS passes its energy costs to its customers, and therefore is not impacted by the price of the commodity.

Petrojam needs to give serious and plausible explanation for its pricing policy and justify its continuous existence as a public entity

I am, etc

CARVEL WILLIAMSON

cheetah@cwjamaica.com

May Pen, Clarendon

Via Go-Jamaica