GOIL suspends membership of AOMCs over allegation of government interference

The Ghana Oil Company (GOIL) has withdrawn its membership from the Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMCs).

According to GOIL, the decision was necessitated by allegations made by the AOMCs over government’s interference in the company’s operations after it recently reduced fuel prices.

In a statement to the AOMCs, GOIL said “the Association [AOMCs] has shown gross disrespect to the company and treated it with contempt and public ridicule and has therefore decided to suspend its membership of the Association immediately.”

The statement signed by Kwame Osei Prempeh, the CEO and managing director of GOIL said, the government at no point directed the company to reduce its fuel prices.

The statement said, “GOIL wants to state categorically that at no point did the government ‘direct’ the company to reduce its fuel prices as being alleged and circulated. GOIL is a listed company with a constituted board of directors and Management takes decisions based on prudent commercial principles.”

Read the full statement below:

The Chamber of Petroleum Consumers Ghana, (COPEC) earlier described the move by the government directing the nation’s oil marketing company, GOIL to reduce its fuel prices as a dangerous move.

The Ghana Oil Company (GOIL) earlier reduced fuel price by 15 pesewas after a purported directive from President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

It comes after Monday’s meeting between the government and transport operators at the Presidency over their sit-down strike.

Checks by www.asaaseradio.com showed that the reduction took effect Tuesday morning with a litre of fuel at GOIL now selling at GHC6.70 pesewas.

But in an interview with Asaase News on The Big Bulletin, executive secretary of COPEC, Duncan Amoah said the government must rather reduce taxes on petroleum products and not set a bad precedence of instructing an oil marketing company that plays within the deregulated market to reduce its prices.

However, the statement expressed surprise at the accusations from the association of oil marketing companies asking the government to withdraw the ‘directive’.

It stated further stated that the company is aware of the deregulation market it operates within, noting that the allegation that the government is interfering in the industry is unfounded and baseless. 

Nicholas Brown

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