Diesel will not hit GH¢22 at pumps

The Chief Executive Officer of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Godwin Edudzi Tamakloe, has assured motorists that diesel prices will not rise to the projected GH¢22 per litre in the latest pricing window.

He said this follows an emergency meeting between the government, the NPA, local refineries and other key players in the downstream petroleum sector to find measures to cushion consumers from rising fuel prices.

The meeting, convened by the Energy Minister on Thursday, October 1, resulted in interventions aimed at absorbing part of the expected increase at the pumps.

“From the National Petroleum Authority, we are coordinating all these efforts from government, and to ensure that the pump, the price you pay ultimately at the pump, will not be the projected 22 Ghana cedis,” Edudzi Tamakloe said.

He explained that Sentuo Oil Refinery and the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) had agreed to maintain the prices at which they sold petroleum products to Bulk Distribution Companies (BDCs) during the previous pricing window.

The government has also suspended a GH¢1-per-litre Energy Sector Shortfall and Debt Repayment Levy (D-Levy) on diesel for October, as part of efforts to contain the expected increase.

Mr Tamakloe further disclosed that some major Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) had indicated that they were likely to maintain pump prices close to the levels recorded during the previous pricing window.

He said while there could be some marginal increases at selected stations, the government’s measures were intended to keep prices well below the projected GH¢22.

“The projection is 22. Now, if you go to the pump and it is 20, if you go to the pump and it is 19, in fact, some of the two major OMCs had already given us some assurances that most likely they will maintain what it was in the previous window. In fact, it may go up maybe 30 pesewas maximum, but won’t get to the 22 that was projected,” he said.

The GH¢22 projection followed a sharp rise in international petroleum prices and pressure on the cedi.

COPEC had projected diesel to rise by 22.91%, from GH¢18.24 to GH¢22.42 per litre, while petrol was projected to increase from GH¢16.90 to GH¢17.78.

The NPA has subsequently raised the price floor for diesel from GH¢16.77 to GH¢17.97 per litre for the October 1 pricing window.

The floor for petrol was also increased from GH¢16.00 to GH¢16.45.