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Finance minister to review downwards oil revenue projections

Ghana's fourth quarter oil revenue fell by a whooping 87 percent as compared to the total revenues in the third quarter.

 

Ghana's fourth quarter oil revenue fell by a whooping 87 percent as compared to the total revenues in the third quarter.

Ghana recorded a total of US$ 44, 788, 915 in oil revenue receipts, according to figures from the Ministry of Finance, representing 87 percent drop from the third quarter’s US$341.50 million in oil receipts.

Last year, when crude prices started sliding, Terkper scaled back revenue projection from GH¢4.2billion to GH¢1.5billion after crude prices fell by more than half.

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In the 2016 budget statement, government pegged a barrel of oil at 53.05 dollars, in line with the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s.

Brent crude now sells about 32 dollars.

The finance minister told Accra based Citi FM that he is preparing different scenarios to cabinet for approval.

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'We went to parliament to give the minister the discretion, the option of using the lower figure  subject to approval by parliament so even the bench mark revenue should have been 86 dollars, we benched it at 53 dollars for the budget,  to revise it to the average of 45 will be tough but its lesser of a yeoman’s job compared with the 40 dollars.

But we are preparing these scenarios to cabinet and pretty soon  subject to their decision we will soon come out with the fiscal position in accordance, if we don’t do that you will raise expectations of ministries, departments and agencies to spend at the price of 53 dollars which does not exist’. He said.

President Mahama last month revealed that due to falling oil prices on the international market, the country has lost billions of cedis to the national treasury.

He said, “From above $90 to 30, we have lost billions of cedis into the national treasury.”

Government is projected to lose about GHC 800 ($200M) million due to the fall in crude oil prices to about $32 per barrel.

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