The Centre for Environmental Management and Sustainable Energy (CEMSE) has raised an alarm over the illegal diversion of premix fuel that ends up in the vehicles of unsuspecting motorists.
The diversion deprives fishermen of the fuel for their outboard motors.
At the same time, the fuel damages the engines of the cars because of the poor quality.
According to the research and advocacy centre, the diversion of premix fuel is a threat to the safety of motorists and should be halted.
The centre says their checks revealed that some fuel operators are fuelling the cars of unsuspecting motorists with suspected premix fuel instead of the premium product.
Premix fuel is the only subsidised fuel product by the government of Ghana since the cancellation of general fuel products in 2015.
The government’s intention in keeping the premix subsidy is to support the fisheries sector to improve the welfare of fisherfolk by cutting the cost of their operations.
However, the sector has been characterised by hoarding, diversion, and overpricing, a situation the centre lamented was making the initiative ineffective.
The Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development (MFAD) had projected a supply of 78 million litres of premix fuel, but the outturn was 21 million litres in 2023.
The remaining litres, which are suspected to have been diverted by the centre, may have ended up on the market and sold as premium fuel.
“Although the government subsidizes premix fuel in Ghana, costing other petroleum product users, evidence from public documents shows that significant volumes of premix fuel are diverted into other markets, with a high probability of ending up in vehicles such as gasoline (petrol),” the statement noted.
“Contrary to this, the National Petroleum Authority(NPA) indicated that premix consumption in 2023 was 34 million litres, indicating a shortfall of about 13 million litres compared to the data from MFAD.
“This implies that 13 million litres of premix fuel were diverted into the market as other petroleum products by blending with other petroleum products. Premix-blended products sold in the market affect the quality of the product sold and damage machinery,” the statement concluded.