MANILA, Philippines - Petron Corp. said it has stopped using the pipeline at its Bacolod depot, after an oil leak on Saturday. 

In a statement, Petron said the company is continuing to work to contain the spill in the waters off Barangay Banago in Bacolod City, which was caused by a leak from its underwater pipeline.

"We have ceased using the pipeline until the necessary tests and repairs to guarantee its integrity and safety are completed," the company said. 

Petron said it had detected "traces of oily sheen" around noon at its Bacolod depot on Saturday. 

"We immediately ordered the vessel to stop discharging and personnel and equipment were deployed to ensure that the sheen would not spread. Subsequently, we traced the oily sheen to our submarine pipeline," it said.

The Philippine Coast Guard was informed about the incident at around 2:40 p.m. on Saturday. 

Petron deployed monitoring teams to survey the shorelines.  "To ensure that no more product remained, we conducted air pushing several times to empty the pipeline. As of this time, we continue containment operations and have recovered a substantial amount of the oily sheen that was observed," it said.

Based on the volume recovered, the "oily sheen" is estimated to be around 100 liters of fuel oil, which is less than one drum.

"The situation is under control but Petron personnel and equipment remain onsite and continue to monitor the area 24/7 in coordination with the PCG," Petron said. 

Meanwhile, the Department of Energy (DOE) said it has been notified about the oil leak at Petron's depot in Bacolod.

DOE director Zenaida Monsada said based on Petron's report, operations of the depot has been temporarily stopped as experts contain the leak which Petron told DOE was only a thin sheen caused by a pinhole in one of the pipelines. 

Monsada said the PCG is in charge of the monitoring operation but based on a DOE circular, Petron is required to submit a report to update the DOE of any development. - With Alvin Elchico, ABS-CBN News