He was accused by the Vice President of policy think tank, IMANI Africa, Kofi Bentil.
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Oil discovery: GNPC boss Dr K. K. Sarpong fingered in Aker Energy oil deal
The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Dr K. K. Sarpong, has been accused of engaging in a conflict of interest in a petroleum agreement between Ghana and Aker Energy Ghana Limited.
Oil field
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He alleged that Dr K.K Sarpong "and his family own Fueltrade," one of the local partners of the Deepwater Tano / Cape Three Points (DWT/CTP) Petroleum Agreement, with a two percent stake.
According to him, it was wrong for a company he and his family own to also be a partner of the field.
He said "it does not look right. We put it out here publicly because we want clarification.
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"We are not against Ghanaian participation in our oil industry but protecting the public purse includes avoiding such conflicts."
Addressing the press, Kofi Bentil said "It is a zero-sum game; what Ghana has, Aker does not have. So, if it is true that the company is negotiating with itself or there are powers on both sides, I think it is a matter of concern and we need some answers concerning that one."
Kofi Bentil
Pulse Ghana
Aker Energy recently announced that its oil exploration in the deepwater Cape Three Points block in Ghana had been successful.
The company explained that initial works show that its Pecan4A well in the block could be holding some 450 to 550 million barrels of oil.
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But Kofi Bentil stated that Aker Energy did not have any formal agreement with the GNPC before it explored oil in some areas outside the blocks it inherited from original owners Hess Energy.
"Hess’ concession was based on the old law which many people believed shortchanged Ghana because it gave us too little and that is why we have passed new laws such as Act 191 and the related legislation so we can get a bit more from our oil.”
"Somehow, Aker believes that it can get more favourable terms even under the new law and they, are seeking recognition of the terms they inherited which Hess was working under," he added.
However, the Minority in Parliament said Ghana could lose a $7.2 billion from the recent discovery.
The Minority said the government and the GNPC have failed to clarify the ownership of the latest discovery.
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"The Minority Caucus in Parliament has learnt with shock, certain developments relating to the recent oil discovery in the Deepwater Tano Cape Three Point (DWT/CTP) Block which is set to lead to the loss of a whopping $7.2 billion to the State.
"On 14th February 2019, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) announced what it described as the biggest oil find in Africa, of 450 – 550 million barrels with potential reserves of nearly 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent. A find which is estimated to be at least $30 billion at today’s crude oil price of $65 per barrel.
KK Sarpong
Pulse Ghana
"The Minority Caucus is extremely concerned that the Government of Ghana (GoG), and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation have failed to clarify the ownership of this latest discovery, and appears to be treating it as part of the original Hess discovery,” the Minority said in a statement.
Aker Energy is 50 percent owned by Aker of Norway, and the other 50 per cent for Norwegian billionaire Kjell Inge Roekk through his private firm.
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