Ghana’s state-owned fuel distributor BOST (Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation) Energies has cut diesel and gasoline exports to neighbouring Burkina Faso and Mali since August, prioritizing domestic demand, Managing Director Afetsi Awoonor said on Wednesday.
Conflict in Ukraine and the Middle East has tightened oil and gas supplies globally, driving fuel prices to record highs in some countries ahead of peak harvest and winter demand.
Ghana’s fuel prices surged earlier this year amid concerns over global supplies but have since eased, helped by a stronger cedi and government intervention.
For Burkina Faso, BOST supplied just 40,000 metric tons of fuel out of the 80,000 tons requested for July and August. Mali received 10,000 tons, despite reporting an additional need for 40,000 tons for August and September, according to Reuters.
In Ghana, where fuel importer and distributor BOST has a 30% market share, diesel consumption continues to grow as economic activity expands, Awoonor said.
“Supply is available, but it’s at a high cost,” Awoonor said, adding that sharp increases in demand had strained supplies and complicated efforts to keep domestic fuel prices stable. Diesel accounts for two thirds of BOST’s supplies.
BOST’s MD, Awoonor also said BOST plans to build a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) terminal in the industrial city of Tema by the fourth quarter next year and to start importing the cooking gas.
The company plans to build an LPG storage facility in Kumasi, Ghana’s second-largest city, to distribute the fuel, he said, adding that the plan was to build terminals at six locations in phases.
Additional Sources: Reuters
