COPEC forecasts stable fuel pricing

The Chamber of Petroleum Consumers Ghana (COPEC) forecasts that petroleum prices will remain stable during the first pricing window in May 2023.

According to COPEC, this is the result of a decline in the international benchmark price for petroleum products on the global market.

Executive Secretary for COPEC, Duncan Amoah, indicated that various Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) that cited higher prices for diesel, such as during the second pricing window in April, would reduce it to align with gasoline prices.

Mr. Amoah stated on Citi News, "The global market benchmark is falling, so if we concentrate more on stabilizing the local currency, the cedi, we should be able to sustain reductions at the pumps."

What actions can be taken to remedy the situation?

The Executive Secretary of COPEC-Ghana stated to The Ghana Report, "We have a local refinery that we could have used to obtain fuel security at lower prices, but we do not believe there is the political will to refurbish the Tema Oil Refinery."

Mr. Amoah remarked that a fully functional refinery would reduce the logistical costs that contribute to the price increase by exporting crude to Europe for refining before importing it back into Ghana.

"The necessity of restoring TOR's functionality and ending political interference holds the key for all of us," he emphasized.

He also mentioned the failure of the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company Limited (BOST) to fulfill its mandate.

Mr. Amoah clarified that BOST is tasked with storing vast quantities of fuel and releasing it to the market in order to stabilize prices and prevent shortages "without further burdening the already overburdened Ghanaian taxpayer."

However, "we do not see that function of BOST, and they are now concentrating on trading...which was not the intent of the BOST Act, which was to hold strategic stock."