Africa Must Develop Gas Resources To Spur Industrialisation-Dr Ackah“Egypt’s gas may just be the solution Europe is looking for. An already strong gas market, a new exploration drive and close ties to European countries including Italy make the country an ideal partner as the bloc seeks alternative gas supplies in 2022 and beyond. The Chamber welcomes potential partnerships such as those between the EU and Egypt, and hopes to see other agreements established with other African gas producers. At African Energy Week in Cape Town, this very topic will form the base of many discussions, with new deals expected to be signed that will increase African gas trade,” states NJ Ayuk, the Executive Chairman of the AEC. The AEC’s annual event, African Energy Week (AEW), which takes place from 18 – 21 October 2022 in Cape Town under the theme, “Exploring and Investing in Africa’s Energy Future while Driving an Enabling Environment,” provides a perfect platform for more European-African energy deals to be discussed, negotiated and signed. AEW 2022 will host panel discussions, high-level meetings and various summits to discuss challenges and solutions for the African energy sector and investment opportunities across the continent’s entire oil and gas value chain. Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
EU Turns To Egypt In Rush To Replace Russian Gas
The European Commission has proposed a deal to accelerate natural gas imports from Egypt in a bid to reduce its reliance on Russian gas.
With Egypt ramping up efforts to become a major liquefied natural gas (LNG) player through increased exploration, production and infrastructure build up and modernization, the North African country is well positioned to expand energy exports to Europe while addressing African energy demand.
Egypt’s Emerging Gas Economy
Owing to its strategic location in close proximity to European markets as well as its success as a gas exporter, Egypt has emerged as an ideal supplier for Europe in the wake of the Russian-Ukraine conflict.
In 2021, Egypt exported approximately 8.9 billion cubic meters (bcm) of LNG, with 63% destined for Asian markets and 31% for Europe.
In 2022, this figure is expected to increase significantly following upstream developments including the Zohr, Atoll, Nooros and West Nile Delta discoveries as well as new commitments by Europe to invest in Egyptian gas projects.
With the Egyptian government set to introduce new licensing rounds in offshore frontier regions, new players are anticipated to enter the market while existing firms boost their own exploration initiatives.
Already, Italian energy major Eni has acquired two exploration blocks in the Meleiha concession following April 2022’s oil and gas discoveries in the Nada E Deep 1X well.
Meanwhile, firms including BP, APEX international, Energeen Egypt, INA-lndustrija Nafte d.d, Sipetrol, and United Energy are expected to pump new investments, drilling up to 33 new wells as part of the licenses awarded by the government in the 2021 International Bidding Round in first quarter of 2022.
These licensing round coupled with the government’s new exploration drive have positioned the country as a highly competitive market as well as top global exporter.
EU Turns To Egypt
As Egypt looks to increase exports, European nations are turning their attention to the north African country, recognizing the opportunity to replace Russian gas with Egypt’s.
This month, the European Commission proposed a deal between EU states and Egypt and Israel whereby the East Mediterranean states will increase gas exports to the bloc.
Expected to be signed at the end of June 2022 following government approvals, the deal will usher in a new era of trilateral trade while strengthening European energy security.
Meanwhile, European-based energy major Eni is focused on scaling-up exploration and production in Egypt in order to strengthen supply channels between the north African country and Europe. In April 2022, Eni signed a deal with Egyptian state energy firm, the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company, to increase exploration in the Nile Delta, Eastern Mediterranean and Western Desert regions, boost production and streamline export processes by restarting the development of the multi-billion Damietta liquefaction plant and gas export terminal in Damiette. The deal will not only improve E&P in Egypt but will position the country as a global energy exporter and Europe’s preferred supplier.
Furthermore, with the deal paving the way for Egypt to export up to three bcm of LNG to Europe via Italy as from 2022, gas monetization in the North African country will reach greater heights. Already, Egypt has witnessed a 98% increase in export revenues to $3.892 billion in the first four months of 2022 and a 768% increase between 2020 and 2021, according to the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources.
Ghana, Lesotho Collaborate On Petroleum Downstream
Ghana’s petroleum downstream regulator, the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) and its counterpart in Lesotho, the Petroleum Fund, are collaborating to improve efficiency in the petroleum downstream in both countries.
In furtherance of the collaboration, a team from the Petroleum Fund, led by its Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Thato Mohasoa, paid a courtesy call on the Chief Executive of the NPA, Dr. Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, in Accra, the capital of Ghana.
The partnership between the two entities will, among other things, share experiences of mutual benefit in the petroleum downstream industry, especially in the management of the Unified Petroleum Price Fund (UPPF) which ensures that prices of petroleum products are the same across the country.
The team is in Ghana to also understudy Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) regulation in Ghana.
Welcoming the delegation, the CEO of the NPA said he was elated to host his guests to study the downstream regulations of LPG.
“It is important that Africans go to each other for solutions to Africa’s problems rather than travelling abroad to seek solutions which are not feasible,” Dr. Abdul-Hamid added.
On his part, the Petroleum Fund CEO of Lesotho, Thato Mohasoa, said he was happy about the warm welcome and that the team was in anticipation to learn about the successes of the NPA’s Unified Petroleum Price Fund and “the groundbreaking role of the downstream sector of Ghana has achieved in regulating LPG.”
The four-member team from Lesotho also included Mohloko Lepamo; Finance Manager of PF, Lebohang Makhoali; Operations Manager of PF and Thato Kolisang; Corporate Affairs Manager.
The team also visited the Ghana National Gas Company and the Tema Oil Refinery as part of their working visit.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
The team is in Ghana to also understudy Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) regulation in Ghana.
Welcoming the delegation, the CEO of the NPA said he was elated to host his guests to study the downstream regulations of LPG.
“It is important that Africans go to each other for solutions to Africa’s problems rather than travelling abroad to seek solutions which are not feasible,” Dr. Abdul-Hamid added.
On his part, the Petroleum Fund CEO of Lesotho, Thato Mohasoa, said he was happy about the warm welcome and that the team was in anticipation to learn about the successes of the NPA’s Unified Petroleum Price Fund and “the groundbreaking role of the downstream sector of Ghana has achieved in regulating LPG.”
The four-member team from Lesotho also included Mohloko Lepamo; Finance Manager of PF, Lebohang Makhoali; Operations Manager of PF and Thato Kolisang; Corporate Affairs Manager.
The team also visited the Ghana National Gas Company and the Tema Oil Refinery as part of their working visit.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com Ghana Has Best Quality Fuel In West Africa-NPA
Ghana’s petroleum downstream regulator, NPA, has asked fuel consumers not to worry about the fuel they buy from retail outlets because the country has the best quality fuel in West Africa.
Head of Quality Assurance at the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Saeed Ubeidalah, said: “So far as the fuel station is operating and has not been shut down, you should be assured of high-quality product for your vehicle or machine,” adding that, “Ghana is the only country in West Africa that sells petroleum products at 50 parts per million (ppm) since 2017.”
Addressing journalists at a capacity-building workshop in Kumasi, Ashanti Region, on petroleum pricing formula, post-deregulation and fuel quality on Friday, he said some consumers are sensitive to pricing while others are to the brand.
However, according to the Quality Assurance Head, “Ghanaians are made to believe the cheaper the price, the lesser quality or if you want a good product, go to the big fuel stations. If you want to compromise the integrity of your engine, go to the other stations.
“I’ve always said that not until NPA closes a fuel station, the presumption is that the station has been monitored, the quality of the product has been guaranteed and it is certified to be sold to the public” he added.
Mr Saeed explained that the Authority has developed an electronic tracking device that monitored the movement of petroleum products from depots to locations to ensure that petrol and diesel are not diluted or adulterated.
He said high-quality petrol and diesel remained the hallmark of the Authority at all the 4,000 retail outlets across the country, saying, “We are always monitoring to ensure that the various retail outlets meet specifications and standards.”
That notwithstanding, he admitted there were a few bad nuts who were not playing by the rules of NPA and advised consumers of petroleum products to report suspected contamination of the commodity to the Authority for investigation.
He asked consumers to consider their shared responsibilities in helping the Authority fight fuel contamination by making use of the complaints platform to get their grievances across.
“We recommend that such cases are reported to the NPA within 48 hours for prompt investigation by contacting any of our regional offices across the country,” he said.
“We’ve had instances, where offenders have been charged to replace car engines of consumers and also compensate for other damages caused the vehicle” he emphasised.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Germany To Fire Up Coal Plants As Russia Turns Down Gas
The German Economy Minister says Germany must curb its gas use as Russia reduces its supply, warning that things “could get tight in winter.’
“Germany must limit its use of gas for electricity production and prioritise the filling of storage facilities to compensate for a drop in supply from Russia,” Economy Minister Robert Habeck said on Sunday.
In a move that goes against the principles of his environmentally-friendly Green Party, the country will also have to increase the burning of coal, Habeck said.
Russian gas company, Gazprom, announced last week that it was reducing supplies through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline for technical reasons, saying there had been delays in the repair of compressor turbines by the German company Siemens Energy.
Germany has come under intense criticism in the past, particularly from the US, for its reliance on cheap Russian energy sources, which Washington has always seen as a security risk for Europe.
“To reduce gas consumption, less gas must be used to generate electricity. Coal-fired power plants will have to be used more instead,” the Economy Ministry said in a statement carried by dw.com.
Habeck also said that more gas had to be pumped into storage facilities.
“Otherwise, it will be tight in winter,” he warned.
Currently, gas storage facilities in Germany are around 57 per cent full.
Habeck lamented the necessity to use coal more to produce electricity but described the current situation as serious.
“That’s bitter, but it’s simply necessary for this situation to lower gas usage,” he said.
Habeck had also proposed putting a cap on domestic heating.
The government also wants to set up a gas auction model this summer to incentivise the saving of gas by industry.
Under the scheme, industrial customers who can do without gas will reduce their consumption in exchange for financial compensation.
The gas saved will then be put into storage.
The government is also planning an additional credit line of €15 billion ($15.7 billion) via the state bank KfW to enable the German gas market area manager Trading Hub Europe (THE) to buy gas to fill the storage facilities.
The third party in the government coalition, the business-friendly Free Democrats (FDP), has also called for Germany to reconsider its 2017 ban on unconventional fracking amid the supply problems.
Fracking is a process of extracting oil and gas from shale rock using chemicals and pressure that is considered by many environmentalists as extremely damaging to nature.
But the FDP’s Parliamentary Director, Torsten Herbst, told the Welt Am Sonntag newspaper that such objections were no longer relevant.
“As scientific studies show, under modern security standards, fracking causes no relevant environmental damage,” he said.
Referring to the fact that Germany intends to import fracking gas from the US, he said that those in favour of the move could not oppose the promotion of safe fracking in Germany itself.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Nigeria: Petrol Subsidy Is Crippling Our Economy- Zainab Ahmed
Nigeria’s economy is being hurt by petrol subsidy and making it difficult for the Federal Government to service debt, Minister for Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed has said.
The World Bank, in its Nigeria’s Development Update (NDU), launched last Tuesday, projected that fuel subsidy would gulp N5 trillion (US$12,025,000,000 ) in 2022—more than Nigeria’s N4 trillion subsidy budget.
“Already, we have borrowing increasing significantly and we are struggling with being able to service debt because even though revenue is increasing, the expenditure has been increasing at a much higher rate so it is a very difficult situation.
“So Nigerians need to understand that this PMS subsidy we are carrying now is hurting the nation, it’s impeding the government’s ability to be able to invest in human capital development.
“With oil prices going up significantly, and with it, the price of imported gasoline, we now estimate that the foregone revenues as a result of gasoline subsidies will be closer to 5 trillion Naira in 2022,” quoted thewhistler.ng from the report.
This year alone, NNPC has spent N947.53 billion (US$2,278,809,650) on petrol subsidy payments.
Speaking at the hybrid launch of the World Bank’s report, the Finance Minister urged Nigerians to understand that petrol subsidy is causing a massive fiscal burden, thus impeding the country’s economic growth.
She said important investments in the oil and gas sector are being delayed because of the heavy fiscal burden of fuel subsidies.
“This premium motor spirit (PMS) subsidy is costing us an additional N4 trillion than was originally planned. So, this is an unplanned deficit,” Ahmed said.
“We have gone to the National Assembly; we have gotten approvals, but the approval was simply for us to cut down on some of the investment costs.
“So, investments that we needed to make in oil and gas sector which are delaying and deferring to a later time and reducing the rollout of those investments. But we also had asked that we needed to borrow more which is very serious.”
According to her, the N4 trillion earmarked for payment of fuel subsidy this year could have been invested in the health or education sector.
“But we are investing it (N4 trillion) in consumption, which is very wasteful. How many Nigerians own cars that are benefiting from this subsidy?” she asked.
She said Nigeria was facing many challenges on multiple fronts as the country is unable to gain from the current oil price rally.
“We are at some kind of crossroads. It is not hearsay to say that Nigeria has not derived what it should from the current high crude oil prices, rather rising crude oil prices are posing significant fiscal challenges to our economy and may lead to some negative receipts and indeed we have started seeing already those negative receipts,” Ahmed added.
“Three factors are preventing Nigeria from fully benefiting from the current boom in the international crisis.
“First of all, our prediction had fallen below Nigeria’s estimated capacity and the OPEC quota because of insecurity, vandalism and theft.
“Secondly, the domestic price of payments has remained fixed, while global PMS prices have continued to rise.
“The third is that rising international crude prices also increase the burden of PMS because we buy refined petroleum products.
“The higher crude oil price goes in the global market, the more we’re paying for PMS, and by maintaining this PMS subsidy we as a country, unfortunately, forego investments that will have used the monies into essential infrastructure, goods or services that would have increased the overall productivity of the nation. So this is the bane of the major issue that we’re facing now.”
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Fuel Hikes: Ghanaians Lament As Diesel Price Nears Gh¢14 Per Litre, Petrol Gh¢11Per Litre
Ghanaians have been lamenting over the rising cost of petrol and diesel in the West African nation, and are calling on President Akufo-Addo to subsidise the commodity to save them from hardship.
Fuel prices have been soaring and pushing prices of goods and services higher in the country.
As of Friday, most oil marketing companies adjusted their pump prices upward, sparking debate on social media.
Leading oil marketing companies, GOIL and Total, adjusted their diesel prices from Gh¢12.20 per litre to Gh¢13.39 per and from Gh¢12.40 to Gh¢13.50 respectively.
The OMCs also adjusted the petrol price to Gh¢10.99(US$1.36 ) per litre from Gh¢ 10.10 per litre.
Star Oil adjusted its diesel price to Gh¢13.58(US$1.68) per litre from Gh¢12.58 (US$1.57) per litre while petrol price was adjusted to Gh¢10.48 per litre.
On its part, Allied Oil adjusted its diesel price to Gh¢13.47 per litre from Gh¢12.50 (US$12.50) per litre with petrol going up to Gh¢10.99, while Lucky Oil adjusted its diesel price to Gh¢13.10 per litre and petrol to Gh¢10.70 per litre.
Unlike in the past when political actors would be seen defending their party in government, the trend has changed with some members of the governing party expressing their frustrations about the rising cost of fuel.
Energynewsafrica.com has been monitoring comments on social media, following the hikes in fuel prices and here are some of the comments:
One Sarfo Kantanka wrote: “I’m begging the government to subsidise fuel small…cost of living plus the complaints are becoming too much for us. ‘Adware k3se3’ can’t win elections in 2024 should things continue like this. I’m even preparing to enter the village for farming.”
Speaker Ntow Fianko also wrote on Facebook: “The economy in chargers, any solution? Or we should endure till when? Don’t tell me it’s so in the US and London. What’s their minimum wage? Please, slash the taxes off if you feel the pain of Ghanaians because difficult times require heavy decisions. Leaders are there to pave the way in the wilderness. It’s getting out of hand if not out of hands already. Don’t also tell me we need the taxes for development cos we used these same taxes to collapse businesses so why can’t we use these same taxes to offset some huge loads from Ghanaians.”
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Energynewsafrica.com has been monitoring comments on social media, following the hikes in fuel prices and here are some of the comments:
One Sarfo Kantanka wrote: “I’m begging the government to subsidise fuel small…cost of living plus the complaints are becoming too much for us. ‘Adware k3se3’ can’t win elections in 2024 should things continue like this. I’m even preparing to enter the village for farming.”
Speaker Ntow Fianko also wrote on Facebook: “The economy in chargers, any solution? Or we should endure till when? Don’t tell me it’s so in the US and London. What’s their minimum wage? Please, slash the taxes off if you feel the pain of Ghanaians because difficult times require heavy decisions. Leaders are there to pave the way in the wilderness. It’s getting out of hand if not out of hands already. Don’t also tell me we need the taxes for development cos we used these same taxes to collapse businesses so why can’t we use these same taxes to offset some huge loads from Ghanaians.”
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com Nigeria: Buhari Approves TCN Unbundling
Nigeria’s President H.E Muhammadu Buhari has approved and given his support for the unbundling of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).
The West African nation’s Minister for Power, Aliyu Abubakar, revealed this when he responded to a question about calls for the unbundling of TCN at the NexTier Power Dialogue in Abuja on Tuesday night.
After the power sector was privatised in 2013 and the successor generation and distribution companies handed over to private investors, the TCN was left under the ownership and management of the Federal Government.
The TCN has remained so since then, although operating under some strategic departments, among which include two key components known as the Transmission Service Provider and the System Operator.
Industry experts and operators in other arms of the power value chain had often called for the unbundling of the transmission company into its two key entities, as the calls became loud, following the incessant collapse of the national power grid under the management of TCN.
The Power Minister stated that the process had reached an advanced stage.
Mr Abubakar also told participants at the dialogue that Buhari was supporting the unbundling of the transmission company, adding that recommendations would be made by the office of the Power Minister soon.
He said, “We are working on that and we have gone very far. As I speak with you now, I have some documents which were brought to me in that regard this afternoon. I’ve not gone through them because I had to prepare for this meeting.
“But as soon as I leave here, I will look at them. Very soon, we will separate the two certificates to unbundle the TCN into two entities. And as we go along we will further unbundle to probably make them three.
“But for this one, we have gone very far with it and I don’t want to preempt what was brought to me in terms of recommendation. However, very soon we will do that. We have got the support of Mr President to that effect.”
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Ghana: President Akufo-Addo Must Save TOR From Collapsing-IES
The Institute for Energy Security (IES), an energy think tank in the Republic of Ghana, is urging President Akufo-Addo to take urgent steps to rescue Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) from total collapse.
According to the think tank, poor management of the refinery in almost the six years of the Akufo-Addo administration is one of the reasons why Ghanaians are paying more for fuel.
IES noted that TOR is sitting idle and rusting away despite the opportunities that the Russian-Ukraine war presents for the country’s petroleum value chain.
“After close to six years of poor management of this vital state institution, the refinery sits idle and hopeless; losing out on the prospects of the Russian-Ukraine conflict, plus the potential of generating that synergy between the upstream and the downstream sectors of the Ghanaian petroleum industry.
“Over the period, successive management and boards of the refinery have failed to provide that vital leadership required to maintain and grow the refinery; particularly so, when the present government in January 2017 inherited a refinery that had cracked approximately 7 million barrels of crude between mid-2015 and end 2016,” IES said in a statement issued by Fritz Moses.
The IES also took on the country’s Energy Minister, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, for being clueless and failing to provide a single strategic option to lift TOR out of its present condition while clamouring for another refinery.
“It is reported that the Minister is uncooperative with TOR’s Management and Board decisions and strategic directions, a situation which would generate another round of leadership failure at the State refinery,” the IES said.
Full Statement
THE PRESIDENT MUST INTERVENE TO SAVE THE TEMA OIL REFINERY (TOR) FROM DEAD COLLAPSE
While the price of a gallon of Diesel draws closer to Gh¢60, the Institute for Energy Security (IES) wishes to put the President H.E. Nana Addo Dankwa Akufu-Addo on notice that “the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) is still in coma, requiring his urgent intervention to save the State facility which is saddled with over Gh¢400 million debt, from total collapse.”
After close to 6 years of poor management of this vital State institution, the refinery sits idle and hopeless; losing out on the prospects of the Russian-Ukraine conflict, plus the potential of generating that synergy between the upstream and the downstream sectors of the Ghanaian petroleum industry.
Although the global economic crisis caused by the pandemic, and the Russian-Ukraine war somehow presents an opportunity for the country’s petroleum sector to exploit opportunities in the petroleum value chain, TOR sits idle, rusting away.
Over the period, successive managements and Boards of the refinery have literally failed to provide that vital leadership required to maintain and grow the refinery; particularly so, when the present government in January 2017 inherited a refinery that had cracked approximately 7 million barrels of crude between mid-2015 and end 2016.
A combination of bad sales and purchase agreements, poor facility maintenance, capacity under-utilization, operational inefficiencies, under-investment, carelessness, and incoherent policies, have diminished any hope that the refinery could run uninterrupted and even profitably.
At a time this nation needs it most, the refinery has ceased to play any meaningful role in managing fuel price and supply risks, while pockets of fuel shortages are recorded with the price of fuel almost quadrupling in the past 6 and half years, stoking inflationary pressures on the entire economy, as Ghanaians will attest.
Unfortunately, the Energy Minister Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh sits clueless, failing to provide a single strategic option to lift TOR out of its present condition while clamoring towards another refinery. Instead, it is reported that the Minister is uncooperative with TOR’s Management and Board decisions and strategic directions, a situation which would definitely generate another round of leadership failure at the State refinery.
After a year and half in office, the Energy Minister has failed to provide that leadership necessary for the restoration of TOR. Put bluntly, the Minister has failed to find for TOR a strategic partner and direction to overturn the crippling state of the refinery.
As a result of all the above, and by virtue of TOR’s strategic place in the Ghanaian economy, the IES wishes to call on the President to as a matter of urgency intervene and restore the facility to a sustainable operational path, before it collapses dead in only a matter of months.
Finally, we do not want to hold the belief that the President, H.E. Nana Akufo-Addo, is not interested in the functionality of TOR and the ongoing fuel price hikes hurting Ghanaians at the pump.
IES, therefore, wishes to call on the President to ensure the refinery’s Management and Board develop a comprehensive business strategy that ensures that TOR is operationally and financially viable, as developments on the international fuel market will continue to have a direct effect on the Ghanaian fuel market.
Signed:
Fritz Moses
Research Analyst, IES
([email protected])
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Apaalse Secures Landslide Victory To Represent Ghana As Commissioner For UNCLOS
Ghana’s candidate for the election to serve as a Commissioner on the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) at the United Nations, Lawrence Asangongo Apaalse, has secured a landslide victory after beating competitors.
Mr. Apaalse polled 131 votes out of the total of 167 people who voted at the UN headquarters in New York on Wednesday, June 15, 2022.
Mr. Apaalse, a former Chief Director of the Ministry of Energy was among 26 candidates from different who were vying for 21 positions at the United Nations.
Commenting on the victory, Mr. Apaalse expressed gratitude to all those who supported him.
“It is not about me; it is about the love people have for our Great Ghana,” he said.
The Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) is one of the three institutions created under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
The Commission plays two significant roles in the establishment of the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles of a Coastal State.
First, the CLCS is tasked to evaluate the claim of a Coastal State for an area of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles.
Second, the CLCS may, upon request, also provide scientific and technical advice to the Coastal State in the preparation of its submission of the claim.
Mr Apaalse, a former Chief Director at Ghana’s Ministry of Energy, played a key role in securing victory for Ghana against Ivory Coast in 2017 during the three-year Ghana-Ivory Coast maritime dispute.
Delivering a speech at a short ceremony organised by Ghana’s Embassy in the New York City, USA, ahead of the election, Mr. Apaalse said he had learnt a lot of lessons since 2006 when he started following the State parties’ meetings and would bring his experiences to bear if he was elected.
Touching on his vision, Mr. Apaalse said one of the things he would do is to help accelerate the pace of evaluation of submissions to the Commission.
He noted that most of the submissions had remained on the shelves for several years, noting that it was about time these submissions were evaluated.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Biden Threatens Oil Firms: Increase Gasoline Production, Lower Prices
Faced with record-high prices at the pump, U.S. President Joe Biden escalated the rhetoric against oil companies on Wednesday, telling them in a letter to produce more gasoline and lower gasoline bills for American consumers.
“At a time of war, refinery profit margins well above normal being passed directly onto American families are not acceptable,” President Biden wrote in a letter to companies including ExxonMobil, Valero Energy, and Marathon Petroleum, seen by Reuters.
“The lack of refining capacity – and resulting unprecedented refinery profit margins – are blunting the impact of the historic actions my Administration has taken to address Vladimir Putin’s Price Hike and are driving up costs for consumers,” the President wrote.
President Biden also warned the companies that “My administration is prepared to use all reasonable and appropriate federal government tools and emergency authorities to increase refinery capacity and output in the near term, and to ensure that every region of this country is appropriately supplied.”
Gasoline prices hit $5 per gallon last week, the highest ever, and averaged $5.014/gallon on June 15, compared to the $5.016 all-time high record set just yesterday.
As gasoline prices rise and inflation hit a four-decade high, President Biden is scrambling for solutions to lower the price at the pump ahead of the mid-term elections in November. So the rhetoric against oil companies is intensifying. At the end of last week, President Biden called out Exxon and other oil companies for making excessive profits, saying that “Exxon made more money than God this year.”
Rallying oil prices, recovering demand post-COVID, and constrained refining capacity are the key reasons for record-high gasoline prices in the U.S. and many other countries.
Crude oil prices are the single biggest factor determining U.S. gasoline prices, accounting for over 53 percent of the average retail price per gallon. Moreover, in the U.S., some 1 million bpd of refinery capacity has been shut permanently since the start of the pandemic, as refiners have opted to either close money-losing facilities or convert some of them into biofuel production sites. In the United States, operable refinery capacity was at just over 18 million bpd in 2021, the lowest since 2015, per EIA data.
Source: Oilprice.com
Ghana: GOIL Posts Gh¢98.74 Million Profit After Tax In 2021
Ghana’s leading indigenous Oil Marketing Company, GOIL Company Limited, registered a profit after tax of Gh¢98.74 million (US$12,194,390) , up by nine per cent compared to Gh¢90 million it made in 2020
The company’s earnings per share also increased from Gh¢0.23 to Gh¢0.253.
GOIL’s total assets also increased from 2.1 billion cedis to approximately 2.5 billion cedis.
The company announced a final dividend of GH¢0.047 per share, amounting to Gh¢17,634,000.
Despite the challenging nature of the year 2021, the company’s volume of sales of fuel was approximately 886.6 million litres, about 11 per cent above that of the previous year.
The Board Chairman of GOIL PLC, Reginald Daniel Laryea, in a speech delivered at the 53rd Annual General Meeting in Accra on Wednesday, which went virtual and in-person, noted that in the year under review, the company added fourteen retail stations to its nationwide network.
He continued that as part of efforts to deliver quality fuel to consumers, the company procured a second test van to test and monitor products at the company’s retail outlets.
According to him, the company also supported a number of institutions.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Ghana: GOIL’s Bitumen Plant In Tema Commences Commercial Production In August
Ghana’s import bill for bitumen is expected to drop significantly this year as GOIL PLC’s bitumen plant under construction in Tema is expected to start commercial production in August this year.
The West African nation imports bitumen—which reportedly costs the country an average of $11.8 billion yearly—from Cote d’Ivoire, India, China and Brazil for road projects.
Responding to a question by a shareholder at the 53rd Annual General Meeting of GOIL in Accra on the status of the bitumen plant, Group CEO and Managing Director of GOIL PLC, Osei Kwame Prempeh, told the gathering that the US$35 million worth of bitumen plant is 99 per cent completed.
He said the plant would be fully completed by the end of June 2022.
According to him, there would be a test run of the plant in July and would start commercial production in August this year.
The 7,000 metric tonnes storage capacity plant is being constructed in partnership with Societe Multinationale de Bitumens (SMB) of Cote d’Ivoire.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Ghana: Policy On Petroleum Subsidies Not Sustainable–Abass Tasunti
The Head of Economic Regulation at the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Abass Ibrahim Tasunti, has stated the Government of Ghana can only subsidise petroleum products if it can do so despite the hikes in petrol prices in the country.
“Subsidy in itself is not a good thing; but because you the consumer are only interested in the cheaper prices but you forget that if the price is cheaper and the product is not available, you will not like that,” he said.
He said, “For us, if the government wants to subsidise, the NPA, as a regulator, cannot say it would not allow the subsidy to be passed.”
According to him, it is up to the government to analyse or assess its capacity to subsidise “but you must have the money before you can subsidise so that we don’t go back to the issue where you have subsidised but there’s no money and there’s a shortage.”
He further explained that the NPA can only advise the government when it realises prices are rising to use the Price Stabilisation and Recovery Levy to cushion consumers which the authority did last year.
Giving a presentation on the Price Formula in Ghana at a day’s capacity-building training for journalists in the Northern Region on Monday, June 13, 2022, Mr Tasunti said Nigeria, as an OPEC country, after restructuring its petroleum industry last year, decided to scrap subsidies on petrol by June this year.
“Why is Nigeria scraping subsidy on fuel? Most countries in the world want to scrap subsidies on fuel. It is not an easy decision to scrap subsidies on fuel but it is very good for the economy. About 70% of vehicles in Nigeria run on petrol. In Ghana, we consume more diesel than petrol but in Nigeria, it is the other way round because everybody is using the fuel that is subsidised but because Nigeria produces a lot more crude oil than Ghana does, that is why they’re able to use the revenue they generate from the crude oil export to subsidise the petrol prices. And even that, they say they want to scrap the subsidy because they aren’t able to afford the subsidy,” he explained.
Meanwhile, the NPA Head of Economic Regulation said the Bank of Ghana is organising a special exchange rate options for the oil industry, asserting it used not to happen until three months ago so that the rate at which the oil industry gets the dollar becomes predictable to help stabilise the price for the public.
For his part, the NPA Head of Quality Assurance, Saeed Ubeidalah Kutia, gave an assurance that the authority would continue to put in quality control measures along the value chain to guarantee the integrity of petroleum products in the country.
The National Petroleum Authority also urged consumers to report issues of fuel adulteration within 48 hours for swift investigations and redress.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Nigeria: I Will Make Nigeria Petroleum Hub Of West Africa-Atiku Abubakar
Nigeria’s former Vice President and Presidential Candidate of PDP for the 2023 Elections, Atiku Abubakar, has pledged his commitment to make the West African nation a net exporter of petroleum products and the refining hub of West Africa.
Nigeria is the largest oil producer in Africa with an average daily crude production of about 1.27 million barrels per day.
Nigeria has five oil refineries with a combined installed capacity of more than 445,000 bpd.
Sadly, these refineries are sitting idle, forcing the country to rely heavily on imported fuel.
In 2021, Nigeria spent US$1.04 billion on imported petroleum products.
In a press statement signed by Paul Ibe, Media Advisor to Atiku Abubakar under the heading: ‘How to reduce infrastructure deficit, free funds for social investment’, it said: “We need to stress that the vision of Atiku Abubakar as encapsulated in ‘My Covenant With Nigeria’ is to drive private investment to shift Nigeria from being a “net importer” to a “net exporter” of petroleum products and become the refining hub of the entire West Africa region.
“We cannot hope to achieve this without extensive reforms to restore investor confidence which is currently at its lowest ebb. The active participation of the private sector in the downstream sector will help drive efficiency and healthy competition in the oil and gas sector.”
He expressed regret about the state of infrastructure in Nigeria.
“Regrettably, Nigeria’s core infrastructure sectors are not operating efficiently. Almost all the infrastructure sectors from roads, railways, housing, power and energy are operating below potential. Over the years, we have observed how these enterprises consume huge public resources while offering poor quality services.
“Many of these state-owned enterprises have become a source for political patronage, corruption and rent seeking to the detriment of Nigeria’s long-term economic growth.
“For example, Nigeria’s refining infrastructure remains poor despite the perennial injection of unending public resources for turnaround maintenance. The country’s refining capacity per capita is 0.002 bpd/capita compared to Libya’s 0.06 bpd/capita and South Africa’s 0.01 bpd/capita. As of today, Nigeria imports over 80% of its refined products to meet its current needs and is said to be the largest importer of PMS in the world, with significant balance of trade implications.
“Sadly, the fiscal cost of maintaining these state-owned enterprises is enormous, and it comes with even greater opportunity costs. By holding unto these underperforming enterprises, Nigeria is sacrificing investments in critical areas, including education, health, water, sanitation and rural infrastructure. For example, the first phase in the rehabilitation of Nigeria’s refineries is expected to gulp US$1.55 billion! With its current precarious fiscal position and daunting development challenges, Nigeria cannot afford to forego productivity, enhancing investments in human capital development and channel scarce resources to moribund enterprises,” the statement concluded.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com