Oil marketing (OMCs) firms have set their fuel prices above the minimum thresholds for petrol and diesel as a response to the National Petroleum Authority’s (NPA) recent directive on minimum pricing for oil products for the second window of October.
The NPA had indicated that effective immediately, petrol should be priced at a minimum of GH₵ 12.73 per litre, while diesel should also be sold at a minimum of GH₵ 13.43 per litre.
Among 15 surveyed oil marketing firms, the highest petrol price was GH₵ 14.58 per litre, while the lowest price was GH₵ 12.73 per litre, matching the NPA’s minimum. For diesel, the highest price reached GH₵14.95 per litre, and the lowest price was GH₵ 13.48 per litre, slightly above the NPA’s minimum of GH₵ 13.43.
The marketing firms included Shell, Total Energies, Goil, Petrosol, JP, StarOil, Viggo Energy, Zen, Bloom Petroleum, Unicorn Petroleum, Puma, IBM Petroleum, So Energy, Benab, and Allied. Each of these companies has set their petrol and diesel prices in response to the minimum price directive, with some pricing slightly above the required thresholds.
None of these marketing companies priced diesel exactly at the set minimum and also none priced any of the product below the minimum in the second pricing window of October.
Shell set its petrol price at GH₵ 14.58 per litre and diesel at GH₵ 14.95. Total Energies followed closely with petrol at GH₵ 14.50 and diesel at GH₵ 14.80. Goil priced its petrol at GH₵ 14.49 and diesel at GH₵ 14.90, while Petrosol offered petrol at GH₵14.39 and diesel at GH₵ 14.69.
JP had petrol priced at GH₵14.27 and diesel at GH₵ 14.47, with StarOil listing petrol at GH₵ 13.99 and diesel at GH₵14.19. Viggo Energy and Zen set petrol at GH₵ 13.70 and GH₵ 13.65 respectively, with diesel at GH₵ 13.95 and GH₵ 14.04.
Meanwhile, Bloom Petroleum offered the lowest petrol price at GH₵13.42 and diesel at GH₵13.48. Unicorn Petroleum listed petrol at GH₵ 13.39 and diesel at GH₵ 13.99, while Puma had petrol at GH₵ 13.38 and diesel at GH₵ 14.41.
IBM Petroleum priced petrol at GH₵ 13.37 and diesel at GH₵ 14.37. So Energy listed petrol at GH₵ 13.13 and diesel at GH₵ 14.30, with Benab offering petrol at GHS 12.99 and diesel at GH₵ 13.67. Allied matched the NPA’s minimum petrol price at GH₵ 12.73, with diesel priced at GH₵ 13.73.
In the first pricing window of October 2024, fuel prices in Ghana remained relatively stable, showing no significant change. The Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) had projected that, despite fluctuations in international oil prices, the local market would see little to no price increases due to the stability of the cedi during that period. While there was a possibility of a slight upward adjustment of around 1%, oil marketing companies absorbed the increase, preventing any significant rise in pump prices.
Yet, the prices for petrol and diesel have shifted across major fueling stations for the second pricing window of October. The current average price for petrol stands at GH₵13.73, a notable decrease from GH₵14.20 three months ago. For the average vehicle, filling up the tank now costs GH₵686.50, reflecting the latest adjustments in fuel prices.
The NPA’s directive is part of a larger strategy to mitigate the impact of global fuel price fluctuations on local consumers and businesses. The pricing mechanism was also to maintain market stability, ensuring that OMCs operate within a controlled framework that balances profitability with consumer affordability.
