The Chief Executive of the National Petroleum Authority, Mr. Godwin Kudzo Tameklo (Esq.), has stressed the need for Ghana to get a second Conventional Buoy Mooring facility, which will see two vessels berthing diesel and petrol simultaneously.
That, he said, would deal with the issue of delay in discharge of petroleum products and demurrage costs.
He made the remarks during a panel discussion under the topic, “Leveraging Upstream Oil and Gas Development to Boost the Downstream Value Chain in Ghana”, at the Africa Oil Week 2025 conference which was held from Monday, September 15 – 18th, 2025 at the Kempinski Gold Coast hotel in Accra, Ghana.
“As a regulator, one of the things we are trying to look at, is the issue of discharge, which has become a major problem but thankfully, the Energy minister, John Abdulai Jinapor, has agreed and we are at the stage of getting government approval for a second Conventional Buoy Mooring facility (CBM). Once we do that, we can have a situation where two vessels will be berthing diesel and petrol at the same time, that will significantly cure the problem of delay and associated with delay is demurrage costs and so even if you are investing in such a facility, the thinking is that, the throughput fee alone will have the capacity of repaying for itself”. Mr Tameklo said.
The NPA CEO, Mr. Tameklo also stated that critical infrastructure is needed urgently at the Takoradi Jetty in terms of storage facilities and called on the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company Limited to offer help in that regard.
“BOST will need to help us, the Takoradi Jetty can pick not less than 65,000 metric tonnes of products, but the question is do we have the corresponding storage facility to pick the products when the come? We need critical infrastructure over there. I do not want to be the regulator that goes into the market because then, you cannot be a player and a regulator at the same time and so we can only pitch either for private investment or the national strategic company BOST to engage.”
He further explained that without adequate storage, Ghana risks slowing down efficiency in the downstream sector, which could affect both pricing and supply reliability.
Speaking at the forum, Mrs Judith Adjobah Blay, CEO of Ghana National Gas Company indicated that there are plans to commercialise pentane gas, in line with government’s green transition agenda and called on investors to invest because Ghana Gas has a good cost recovery system.
“To fit in the green transition agenda, there are plans to commercialise pentane gas. As of now, if you go to Ghana Gas and you see a flare, its because we are flaring that product(pentane) but because we don’t want to flare to fit into our green transition agenda, we simply as a country do not want to flare gas, so it is the agenda for us to look into a feasibility study to commercialise pentane, I believe that it is a product that can be used for several things”. Mrs. Blay said.
On his part, Managing Director for Tema Oil Refinery, Mr Edmond Kombat, answering a question about plans to modernise the company’s operations, stated that there are plans to get the refinery back and running and show that it can bring in profit.
The Managing Director for the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company Limited, Mr. Afetsi Awoonor, says the company is working on revamping existing infrastructure andworking with SONABHY from Burkina Faso to supply petroleum products from Tema to the Sahelian regions, among other things.
The forum highlighted a shared commitment from industry players to align infrastructure development, environmental sustainability, and regional cooperation to strengthen Ghana’s downstream petroleum sector.
With clear opportunities for growth and investment, stakeholders expressed optimism that Ghana is positioning itself as a reliable energy hub for West Africa.
The Africa Oil Week which is in its 31st year, was held for the first time in Accra this year, after being held in South Africa for the last 30-years.
The conference brings together industry leaders to develop policies, share discoveries, secure investments, and shape the continent’s energy future.