The Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation (BOST) Company has dispelled claims suggesting that there is an imminent fuel shortage in Ghana.
In the past weeks, some analysts and media publications have suggested a looming shortage of the product citing the depreciation of the cedi as a key factor.
In a release issued by the company on September 21, the Managing Director (MD) of BOST, Edwin Alfred Provencal, explained that estimates from the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) suggest that the total volumes of fuel available in the country as of September 20, 2022, was equivalent to 43 days of national demand and not 13 days as being peddled around.
He said out of the total quantity, BOST held what could last for 13 days while the Bulk Oil Distribution Companies (BDCs), together, are holding close to 30 days of national demand.
The company has, therefore, urged the public to disregard any publication attributed to its managing director that there is a looming fuel shortage.
“We urge Ghanaians to disregard rumours of an impending fuel shortage in the country. It is untrue. We have also taken notice of a publication attributing a prediction of imminent fuel shortage in the country to our Managing Director, Edwin Alfred Provencal, where he never made mention of such thing,” a portion of the release read.
The BOST MD stressed that there are a number of fuel storage capacities around the country, and they are nowhere near shortage.
“We have tank farms across the length and breadth of the country. When I came back to check, we have almost 40 days in private storage plus the 13 days in BOST; so, we are nowhere near running out”.
“At any material moment, the total quantities of product available in the country, thus across all tank farms as tracked by the National Petroleum Authority, includes BOST stocks and stocks of private BDCs,” the release explained.
There have been calls for scrapping the BOST margin, which adds up to the fuel price.
“If you talk about taking away the BOST margin because the BOST margin comes at a cost; that cost is a social cost. Don’t just take away the BOST margin, also take away that social cost – then you are being fair and comparing apples to apples and oranges to oranges,” the statement pointed out.
But a portion of the release believes this would have dire consequences for fuel supply beyond the Greater Accra region if scraped.
“But you don’t say take away the BOST margin but BOST will continue to manage the depots in Bolga, in Savelugu, in Buipe, in Akosombo, it’s not fair. Private money does not do social projects, but BOST is mandated to do these things, and they should come at a social cost,” BOST expressed.