Fuel Price Reduction Has Nothing To Do With Gold-For-Oil Policy – IES

The Institute of Energy Security (IES) says fuel price reduction in the second pricing window of February was due to a marginal decline in international oil market prices and not the government’s Gold-For-Oil policy.

According to IES, the impact of the government’s policy, intended to cushion consumers to purchase fuel at a cheaper price, is yet to be felt.

The international crude oil benchmark Brent fell to about $82.89 per barrel on average terms from a previous average rate of $86.14 per barrel.

This represented a 3.77% fall in average price over the last two weeks. The window saw the price drop to about $79.72 per barrel at the close of the trading day on February 5, after which the price has seen slow increases and closed the window trading day at about $86.39 on February 10, 2023.

IES, in its prediction for the second pricing window, projected that petrol would sell at about GH¢14.40 and diesel around GH¢13.90.

Research Analyst at the IES, Adam Yakubu, said, “let me state that what we are reporting at the moment is not as a result of the Gold-For-Oil policy but as a result of international market indicators and the domestic performance of the forex”.

“But the government has also given indications that early weeks of March, we will be receiving more consignment from the gold-for-oil policy. So let me say that from now till the end of the window, we might not see much from the gold-for-oil policy. But we still call for the government to give more details so that we input it in our computation,” Mr Yakubu explained on Citi Tv on February 16.