ENERGY. President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. meets with Department of Energy officials in this undated photo uploaded on the state-run Radio Television Malacanang's (RTVM) official Facebook page. Marcos, in separate Facebook post, said he had a thorough discussion with the DOE officials to address the soaring prices of petroleum products. (Photo courtesy of RTVM) MANILA - President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. on Thursday met with key Energy officials to address the continued oil price hikes. Photos of Marcos' meeting with the officials of the Department of Energy (DOE) were uploaded on the state-run Radio Television Malacanang's (RTVM) official Facebook page. "President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. met the key officials of the Department of Energy at Malacanan Palace in Manila to discuss the national government's initiatives and programs in addressing the continuing oil price hike in the country," the RTVM said. Malacanang has yet to provide additional details about Marcos' meeting with DOE officials. In June, the DOE announced its intent to ask the 19th Congress to prioritize the review of the oil price deregulation law, as it seeks to regain authority to intervene when there is a dramatic surge in prices of petroleum products for a longer period. The meeting between Marcos and the Energy officials came two days after oil companies implemented a big-time price rollback for diesel and kerosene. However, gasoline prices remained steady. It was also held after Marcos on Tuesday bared his plan to expand the coverage of the government's fuel subsidy program by including tricycle drivers to help the transport sector amid the increase in oil prices. The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) earlier announced that over 600,000 tricycle drivers nationwide will be receiving fuel subsidy. The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) began releasing fuel subsidy for other public transport operators and drivers in March this year. The LTFRB was waiting for the beneficiary list of tricycle and delivery drivers from the DILG. New Energy chief In a separate Facebook post, Marcos said he had a thorough discussion with the officials of the DOE to address the soaring prices of petroleum products. "Sa pandaigdigang krisis ng pagtaas ng presyo ng langis, isa sa magiging mahalagang kasama natin sa pagtugon ay ang Kagawaran ng Enerhiya. Masusing tinalakay ang ating mga susunod na hakbang at ang magiging direksyon ng departamento (Amid the global oil price hike, the Department of Energy is one of the important agencies that will help us address the issue. We thoroughly discuss the next steps and development in the department)," he said. Marcos, the RTVM said, is also set to name the new Energy secretary "in the coming days." On Monday, Press Secretary Beatrix Rose "Trixie" Cruz-Angeles said Marcos is already in the "final stage" of evaluating the candidates for vacant posts in his Cabinet. (PNA) }