At a time when public confidence in state-owned enterprises has steadily eroded, the Managing Director (MD) of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), Edmond Kombat, is charting a different course, and this commitment is not defined by the normal rhetoric.
Edmond Kombat has taken the transformation of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) personally and has deployed what can be described as a relentless hands-on leadership.
Speaking to fellows of the Africa Extractives Media Fellowship (AEMF) who visited the facility to obtain firsthand evidence of the much-touted transformation, the young Managing Director shared a glimpse into the mindset driving the refinery’s ongoing turnaround.
Edmond Kombat says he believes that leadership must be lived and hands-on, and not always delegated.
For an institution like TOR, plagued by debt overhang, operational inefficiencies, and declining public trust, Kombat believes that such an approach is the best foot forward in order to drive the required reset.
Edmond Kombat says he is not merely overseeing operations from a distance; he is immersing himself in them. He recounted how he is physically entering storage tanks to inspect them. He also independently verifies operational realities. This leadership style reflects a deliberate rejection of complacency.
He adds that he virtually does not sleep but is always on the lookout to see through projects and tasks to the letter.
“If you run a public institution where confidence has drained for a very long time. I don’t sleep. I take every single thing I say very seriously,” he emphasized.
Edmond Kombat says his motivation is from Ghana’s long history, where institutional decay has taken root and second-hand information often reinforces systemic blind spots. By insisting on firsthand oversight, Kombat is attempting to rebuild not just infrastructure, but credibility.
“I work very hard. You know, I was entering tanks. I just came from entering tanks myself. So I don’t rely on what somebody’s telling me. I see things the way they’re supposed to be. So, it’s the personal commitment that we are in to make sure that whatever we say we are doing, indeed, we are actually doing it,” he noted.
Despite the personal commitment of the MD, the challenges confronting TOR are far from routine. The refinery’s recent crude supply disruptions underscore the vulnerability of Ghana’s downstream petroleum sector to global shocks.
He reveals that two vessels carrying crude, initially en route from Egypt, were abruptly diverted following the outbreak of geopolitical tensions linked to the Iran-Israel conflict escalation. The result is an immediate strain on already fragile supply chains.
Compounding the situation is the sharp escalation in freight costs. Transporting crude from the Suez Canal corridor to Ghana has surged from an average of $3–$4 per barrel to nearly $12. Insurance premiums have followed a similar upward trajectory, reflecting heightened global risk perceptions.
For a refinery already operating within tight financial constraints, these external pressures could easily derail recovery efforts. But Kombat’s response has been to localize resilience.
By pivoting toward increased reliance on West African crude sources, TOR is attempting to reduce exposure to volatile international shipping routes and geopolitical disruptions. It is a strategy rooted in pragmatism, shortening supply chains, lowering transport risk, and fostering regional energy integration.
He recounted that, “One of the challenges that we had was that our crude had just finished. And we had two vessels that were coming. Two of them were loaded in Egypt. And then that was the time that the Iranian war started. And they were re-diverted. Then we had an instance where ship freight increased. So, for example, before that, to transport a barrel from around the Suez Canal area to here was $3 or $4 a barrel. But right now it’s about $12 a barrel. And insurance premiums have also increased.”
“So, one of the things we are doing is to try as much as possible to rely on a lot of West African crew,” he noted.
For many Ghanaians, TOR represents more than just an industrial asset. It is a symbol of unrealized potential. This facility, if fully revived, could significantly reduce fuel import dependence and strengthen national energy security.
It is the prayer of many that this kind of leadership offered by the current Managing Director will bear the needed fruit and change the narrative of TOR for the better.
