Ghana: COMAC Vows To Support Petroleum Downstream Reset

The Chamber of Oil Marketing Companies (COMAC) has vowed to expose its members who fail to comply with regulations governing the petroleum downstream sector and instead engage in illegal activities to the detriment of the majority of industry players.

This bold pronouncement follows the release of the 2025 Mid-Year Industry Report on the Petroleum Downstream Sector, which revealed several infractions and irregularities in the volumes of petroleum products sold by some smaller oil marketing companies.

Addressing a press conference in Accra on Monday, the Board Chairman of COMAC, Mr. Gabriel Kumi, said the Chamber will not sit idle while a few members tarnish the image and integrity of the industry.

He noted that the Chamber fully supports President Mahama’s vision of “resetting the country” and stands ready to collaborate with government to sanitize and reform the petroleum downstream sector.

“The rot in the report is massive, and we’re ready to reset this industry. We can’t allow this to continue. There are a lot of irregularities—small companies lifting unthinkable volumes. It is outrageous,” Mr. Kumi fumed.

Mr. Kumi alleged that some OMCs and individuals may be misreporting product distribution data.

“You cannot tell me that LPG consumption increased by only 5% nationally but shot up by 86% in the Upper West Region. This is absolutely ridiculous,” he stated.

“We believe some products are lifted, sold in Accra, and falsely recorded as deliveries to the Upper West Region in order to claim higher transport reimbursements from the UPPF.”

He noted that the largest LPG station in the Upper West Region recorded only a 6.5% growth, making the reported figures even more questionable.

Mr. Kumi called on the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) to deploy its full monitoring and enforcement mechanisms to address the issue, stressing that the regulator’s tracking system should be able to verify actual delivery routes.

“The NPA tracks every truck that loads petroleum products in Ghana. A proper review of the tracking data will reveal whether these reported volumes actually reached the Upper East and Upper West regions,” he emphasized.

He said the irregularities affect about 95% of COMAC’s member companies, urging the NPA and relevant ministries—particularly the Ministries of Energy and Finance—to take decisive action to safeguard the integrity of the petroleum pricing and distribution system.

Mr. Kumi commended the leadership and professionalism of the Chief Executive Officer of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Mr. Godwin Edudzi Tameklo, since assuming office as head of the downstream petroleum regulator.

However, he cautioned that all the CEO’s commendable efforts could be undermined if the current challenges facing the sector are not addressed decisively.

“If he is not able to deal with a canker that affects about 95% of us, then we cannot call him our leader,” he stated.

Source: https://energynewsafrica.com