The price of diesel at fuel stations could have risen to about GH¢28 per litre if the government had not intervened to absorb part of the sharp increase in international petroleum prices, the Chief Executive Officer of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Godwin Edudzi Tameklo, has said.
Mr Tameklo said the international price of diesel had increased significantly since February 2026, putting pressure on fuel prices in Ghana.
He explained that the price of a tonne of diesel on the international market had nearly doubled, rising from about US$794 in February to US$1,519.
According to him, the increase would have translated into much higher prices at the pumps if the full cost had been passed on to consumers.
Speaking in an interview, Mr Tameklo said the government had so far spent close to GH¢1 billion on interventions aimed at cushioning consumers from rising petroleum prices.
He explained that the intervention was helping to reduce the amount motorists and other diesel users would otherwise have paid at fuel stations.
For instance, he said a consumer buying 10 litres of diesel was receiving about GH¢20 in government support.
“I need to point out that for the intervention from government, a litre of diesel should be selling within the region of GH¢28 per litre,” Mr Tameklo said.
He said the intervention was intended to prevent the sharp rise in international petroleum prices from being fully transferred to consumers.
Mr Tameklo noted that allowing the entire increase to reflect at the pumps could have broader economic consequences, particularly through higher transport costs and increased prices of goods and services.
The government’s intervention, he said, was therefore helping to cushion consumers from the immediate impact of the surge in global diesel prices.
