Row over rising fuel prices in Ghana

desmond frimpong

February 7, 2018 2:42 PM

Ghanaians feel cheated at various filling stations and want to protest

The persistent increase in the prices of petroleum products in Ghana has seen consumers wanting to protest.

Consumers have had to pay more at the pumps for a better part of 2017, and in January 2018, prices went up due to rise in oil prices, and the cedi's marginal depreciation.

A litre of both petrol and diesel is now selling at $1.10.

Despite the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) calling for a more stable pricing at the pumps, it has not had any effect.

Citi News reports that the Executive Director of Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC), Duncan Amoah, called on government to review prices of petroleum products.

“We are paying close to five dollars in order to be able to get petrol to your tank. That clearly is not helping anything. We understand very well that some of the taxes were introduced as windfall taxes at the time that world market prices had dropped so low and Ghana needed a little more revenue in order to be able to cushion the world market prices that have gone down.”

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However, local news agency in Ghana Joyonline says the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has described the planned protest by a lobby group and a union - the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (Copec) and Industrial and Commercial Workers Union (ICU) - is unjustified.

The regulator has made "price stabilisation interventions over the past three months", calling the decision to protest "anything but noble".

COPEC says the price of petrol rose by 4% in January. Now a further 2% increase has been predicted for February by The Institute of Energy Security (IES) think tank.

desmond frimpong