The Chinese-owned refinery, Sentuo Refinery, has admitted that its premium spirit, popularly known as petrol, did not meet the required standard and has taken corrective measures to address the issue.
Albert Duncan, a consultant with the refinery, told energynewsafrica.com that they realized that there was a problem with the vapour pressure of the PMS.
He said they have taken corrective measures to address the issue.
“As we speak, we are selling. It’s only the petrol that had a problem and we have taken steps to correct it,” Mr Duncan said via the telephone.
His comments followed a statement issued by the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) and the Institute for Energy Security (IES) which accused the refinery of selling products that did not meet standards and specifications.
The two energy think tanks, in a statement, claimed that the out-of-specification products were reported to causing damage to vehicles and machinery with key oil marketing brands struggling to find ways to dislodge these products, with some compelled to shut down dispensing pumps, while the regulator–the National Petroleum Authority (NPA)–looked on helpless.
“The IES and COPEC wish to serve notice that they will not hesitate to equally drag the Ghana Standard Authority (GSA) and the National Petroleum Authority to the law courts in the coming days if the current menace is not immediately addressed,” the group warned.
Reacting to the issue, the regulator’s Head of Quality Control,Ubeidalah Saeed said it was only the petrol from the refinery that had an issue and not all their products.
He clarified that the issue with the petrol was about vapour pressure and not that the product was unwholesome.
“So it is not like the product is unwholesome but rather the pressure was above the maximum requirement,” he told this portal on the telephone.
“Because products are co-mingled at the retail outlet at point, where the pressures were low at these services stations resulting in this challenge,” he explained.
Continuing, Mr Saeed said the NPA asked Sentuo Refinery to suspend the sale of the PMS and correct the anomaly before selling the product.
He said few minutes earlier, he spoke to an official of the refinery and he confirmed that they were resolving the issue.
In a statement issued by the Corporate Affairs Diretorate, NPA said beyond the remedial actions taken by the refinery, it has also impossed sanctions on them.
Sentuo Refinery is a new refinery located in the Tema industrial area.
The refinery is undergoing a test run and it is expected to be completed by the end of March or the first week in April 2024.
The NPA, however, fitted them to sell its products after meeting the standard and specifications.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com