Ghana’s largest indigenous oil marketing company, GOIL PLC, has inaugurated five Auto Gas stations simultaneously at five specific locations nationwide at a ceremony held at the Burma Camp GOIL Service Station in Accra, on Wednesday, October 18, 2023.
The five locations include the Cape Coast By-Pass in the Central Region, the GOIL Burma Camp, and Kpeshie Service Station in the Greater Accra Region, Paco Gas station, Takoradi in the Western Region (yet to be approved by NPA), and Kentinkrono, Kumasi in the Ashanti Region.
This move by GOIL is in preparation for the full implementation of the government’s cylinder recirculation module (CRM) policy, which aims to ensure that by 2030, 50 percent of Ghanaians have access to safe, clean, and environmentally friendly liquefied petroleum gas.
Speaking at the opening of the new gas stations in Accra, the Group CEO of GOIL PLC, Kwame Osei-Prempeh said GOIL is at the forefront of meeting all the supply chain requirements set by the NPA.
This commitment is demonstrated through the construction of two Cylinder Bottling Plants, one in Kumasi and another in Tema, as well as the establishment of five modern Auto Gas stations.
He further explained that the sites were selected because they meet the necessary criteria, including approval from the Land Use & Spatial Planning Authority, compliance with National Petroleum Authority (NPA) regulations, profitability, and ensuring that customers in different areas have access to modern and safe gas facilities.
“The Modern Auto Gas Stations are designed based on current construction procedures and international safety standards. The technical experts used Gas Leakage Detection Alarms, Loading Arms, Sprinkler Systems, Automated and Emergency Shut-Off Valves coupled with underground LPG storage tanks fitted with standard equipment. The reason for the choice is to ensure the risk of LPG leaks with the resultant fire accidents and explosions is reduced to the barest minimum. The Modern Auto Gas Stations would reduce manual handling of the opening and closing of valves, which makes them a safer option for dispensing LPG into vehicles in Ghana,” Hon. Osei-Prempeh stated.
He also mentioned that talks between GOIL’s Technical and Special Products Department and the NPA highlighted the importance of adding cylinder filling stations to the project.
This is necessary to ensure that GOIL can continue providing safe cylinder filling services to its LPG customers until the complete rollout of the CRM.
Mr. Osei-Prempeh added that the inauguration of the facilities would further strengthen and widen the company portfolio and consolidate gains already made in the LPG business, saying, “As an indigenous company, GOIL would continue to do its business in the national interest and ensure that the interest and safety of our consumers always come first.”
Speaking on behalf of the sector Minister, Matthew Opoku Prempeh, his Deputy Minister for Energy, Andrew Kofi Egyapa Mercer congratulated GOIL PLC for achieving this milestone, an accomplishment the entire nation takes pride in.
He said the inauguration of the modern Auto Gas station at Burma Camp and by extension, the other four stations in Kpeshie, Cape Coast, Takoradi, and Kumasi marked a significant achievement in the implementation of energy policy as it pertains to the transport sector in Ghana.
He stated further that the opening of the facilities represents a major achievement in the country’s energy policy, which has been to adopt natural gas as a transition fuel for power generation and transportation.
“GOIL’s opening of these modern autogas stations is, therefore, in full alignment with Ghana’s just energy transition pathway to net-zero status. The expectation is that the increased access to safe outlets for the sale and purchase of autogas in the country would translate into a gradual increase in the usage of gas-powered vehicles nationwide, he stated.
“It is also the expectation that the association of a trusted indigenous brand like GOIL, with autogas, would enhance confidence in the use of gas for vehicle fueling and dispel any existing negative safety-related notions on the use of gas for transportation purposes, he added.
Again, Mr. Mercer stressed his firm belief that the establishment of more autogas stations would catalyze the opening of businesses and services such as specialized retrofitting and servicing garages which are necessary to support the gradual migration toward the use of gas-to-power vehicles.
“The attendant increase in employment opportunities in the space would be a significant benefit to Ghana’s economy. GOIL PLC has indeed blazed a trail that all OMCS operating in Ghana must follow,” he said.
Esther Anku, a Senior Programme Officer at the NPA, emphasized that the facilities would deepen the country’s efforts to ensure 50 percent of Ghanaians have access to safe, clean, and environmentally friendly liquefied petroleum gas by 2030.
“I am very excited to see these facilities come to fruition, but, how they are operated and maintained is crucial,” she added
She, therefore, urged the management of GOIL to embrace technological innovations to deliver unrivaled customer experience, as well as maintain the safety measures embedded in the facilities.
The construction of the stations was in partnership with South Korea’s Yooju Engineering and Construction Limited.
The Dealer of the Burma Camp GOIL Service Station, Aretha Barkers Woode expressed delight and thanked GOIL for using her station to inaugurate all the five auto gas stations simultaneously.
She urged motorists, household consumers, and the general public to patronize the station to experience the best service in gas and other fuels at the Burma Camp GOIL Service Station.
Present at the ceremony were high-level military officers, industry players, former MD of GOIL, Mr. Patrick Akorli, Brand Ambassador of GOIL, Prof Azumah Nelson, Mrs. Faustina Nelson, former Board Members of GOIL, Board Members and management of GOIL Plc, Moses Asaga and Alhassan Tampuli, former CEOs of NPA, OMC boss, Mr. Kwaku Agyeman Duah, Executive Secretary of COPEC, Mr Duncan Amoah, officials from NPA, GSA, EPA, GNFS, FID among and some GOIL dealers.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com