Government’s plan to find affordable petroleum products impossible – IES boss

The Executive Director of the Institute for Energy Security, Nana Amoasi VII, has described the government’s attempts to find more affordable petroleum products amid the economic crisis as wasteful and impossible.

Speaking on The Big Issue, Nana Amoasi VII said the players in the petroleum sector would have utilised links to cheaper fuel by now if possible.

“If there is somewhere that we have heavily discounted fuel that can cushion our situation, I am certain that the BDCs and the OMCs will be the first to jump on this.”

If the government did secure a deal for cheaper fuel, Nana Amoasi VII said such a move should be proved and Ghanaians must ask “what did they give in return for such a huge favour.”

Nana Amoasi VII also criticised the overall attempt by the government to look for cheaper fuel, as outlined by the President during a speech on Ghana’s economic crisis.

The IES boss called it a “recipe for disinvestment” because of the wrong signals it would send to the international market.

“It will stifle investment and worsen the present case of under-investment in the energy or the petroleum sector because it can potentially cause an unwanted case of excess supply.”

“We will be giving the signal that we prioritise the importation of fuel while ignoring local investment,” Nana Amoasi VII said.

Currently, some Oil Marketing Companies are selling products for as high as GHS23.

The rising costs have been due to the high exchange rate affecting the prices of fuel on the international market.