After becoming a subject of intermittent controversial debate of whether to sell or not, since it has become a white elephant, life is gradually and steadily coming back into the “once” dead Tema Oil Refinery (TOR)
The story of the refinery is that of resilience, grit, determination, and the discipline of the current management and the staff. Beneath the surface of this recovery of the refinery lies a far more dramatic narrative, one of decline, near-collapse, and a painstaking attempt at revival.
During a recent site visit to witness the told story of the refinery, Fellow of the Africa Extractives Media Fellowship (AEMF) had the rare opportunity to interact with the Managing Director, Edmond Kombat.
The MD offered a rare, deeply personal account of that journey, which mirrors Ghana’s broader struggle with managing critical national assets.
Part I: A Fragile Recovery Before 2017
To understand the present, Edmond Kombat first rewinds to the period between 2015 and early 2017, under the administration of John Dramani Mahama.
The current MD, who had the opportunity to serve at the facility at the time, narrated that TOR was already in distress. Debt had ballooned to about $650 million, threatening not just the refinery’s survival but also the stability of key financial institutions exposed to its liabilities.
Through the Energy Sector Levies Act (ESLA), the government intervened decisively. About $300 million was earmarked to settle debts owed to four banks on the brink of collapse. The move was both a bailout and a reset, cutting TOR’s debt nearly in half.
By the time power changed hands in January 2017, the refinery’s debt had been reduced to roughly $300 million. More importantly, there was a clear roadmap that within three years, TOR’s books were to be cleaned up and operations fully restored.
Operationally, there were signs of life. About 7 million barrels of crude had been refined, including Ghanaian crude, with an additional 1 million barrels in storage.
Critical investments had also been made. For instance, a new furnace, a 120-tonne boiler to stabilize power supply, and the offshore mooring facility were all procured to become key revenue-generating assets.
In many ways, although TOR was not fully transformed, it was stabilised with a foundation to build on.
Part II: The Sorry State in 2025
Fast forward to when Kombat assumed leadership, under the current term of President Mahama, the picture had changed dramatically.
What he encountered, by his own account, was not a struggling refinery but a totally broken system.
Debt had climbed again from $350 million to $517 million. Operations had stalled. The refinery was not processing crude. Key plants had deteriorated from a lack of maintenance. He disclosed that seventeen storage tanks were out of service.
Financially, the situation was even more troubling. TOR had gone six years without audited accounts. Losses had ballooned into billions of cedis, leaving the company with negative equity. Debts piled up across the board; owed to utilities, regulators, and even its own workers.
Staff who retired years earlier had not been paid their benefits. Salaries were delayed. Morale was low.
Yet, paradoxically, revenue streams still existed. The offshore mooring facility, transferred to a private partner, had generated about $54 million in dividends over eight years. But there was little clarity on how those funds were utilized.
Internally, divisions ran deep. Skilled staff had exited in droves, many heading to opportunities in the Middle East or competitors like the Dangote Refinery. What remained was a fractured workforce, plagued by distrust and stagnation.
Part III: The Transformation: Reset, Rebuild, Restore
Despite how depressing the situation was, Edmond Kombat says what followed was less of a turnaround strategy and more of a survival mission.
With no government bailout and no access to credit, the new management had only one option: rebuild from within. The first step was human, not technical. The aim was to restore trust.
Over 300 staff petitions regarding stalled promotions were personally reviewed. Long-overdue promotions were granted. Salaries were modestly increased. It was a symbolic but powerful reset, aimed at unifying a divided workforce.
Next came revenue generation. By extending operational hours at the loading gantry and attracting private petroleum players back to TOR’s facilities, the refinery began to rebuild its internally generated funds.
The results, he says, were telling. Trust, once broken, was slowly restored.
Then came the engineering challenge. Without external support, TOR’s own technical team brought the Crude Distillation Unit (CDU), the heart of the refinery, back to life.
He proudly recounted that on December 19, 2025, TOR resumed refining operations, marking a symbolic rebirth. Since then, progress has been steady.
He recounts that storage tanks are being rehabilitated, loading infrastructure is being modernised, and the secondary processing units, like the RFCC, which is under rehabilitation, are nearing completion.
In all, about 700 jobs, temporary and permanent, have been created. A new generation of workers is being trained to replace an ageing workforce
Beyond operations, Kombat is emphatic about TOR’s strategic value.
With storage capacity far exceeding that of Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company, the ability to process aviation fuel, and critical links to pipelines and depots across the country and into the Sahel, TOR is not just a refinery; it is a national security asset.
In a world where disruptions like tensions around the Strait of Hormuz can choke supply chains overnight, such infrastructure becomes indispensable.
A Story Still Under Construction
Today, TOR is not fully restored; however, it is no longer dormant as it used to be years back.
As fellows of the AEMF testified, the transformation is visible, but incomplete. The refinery is operational, and the confidence is returning.
For Edmond Kombat and his team, the mission is to prove that a state-owned industrial giant can work, not through rhetoric, but through results.
And if the facility fully comes back to life for Ghana, the stakes are even higher.
