Petroleum tycoon PUMA Energy’s Head of Africa, Fadi Mitri, has stressed the significance of Ghanaians paying fair market prices for fuel in order to ensure a steady supply of petroleum products in the nation.
Due to liquidity issues and declining foreign reserves, Ghana’s government has been implementing policy initiatives like the gold-for-oil contract to improve the nation’s energy security.
However, these steps could not be sufficient to cover all of Ghana’s petroleum requirements, raising the possibility of a disruption in the fuel supply.
Speaking during a recent visit to Ghana, Mitri highlighted PUMA Energy’s long-standing presence and significant investment in the country, stating, “we’ve been in Ghana for over 15 years and we are certainly one of the largest energy investors in the country. We’ve invested over the last ten years $450 Million.”
On the issue of ensuring a constant supply of petroleum products, Mitri argued that “the answer to that from PUMA’s perspective is that what can ensure that supplies reliably arrive in Ghana is that Ghanaians are always able to pay the fair market price for the supplies.”
He continued by saying that while Ghana’s deregulated gasoline market permits price variations, the currency must likewise be let to fluctuate in accordance with market circumstances.
Regrettably, starting on February 1, 2023, for the following two weeks, the costs of gasoline, diesel, and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) are expected to rise by seven to thirteen percent.
Hence, it is predicted that gasoline will cost around GH$15 per liter and diesel will cost more than GH$17. The IES blames the price increase on the recent significant depreciation of the cedi as well as rising international fuel costs as seen on the S&P Platts platform around the world.