The Chamber of Oil Marketing Companies (COMAC) has expressed concern over the government’s recent fuel price intervention, cautioning that the policy could put significant financial pressure on oil marketing companies (OMCs).
Speaking on Citi Eyewitness News on Thursday, April 16, COMAC Chief Executive Officer Dr. Riverson Oppong said the government’s decision to lower fuel prices comes at the expense of key operational margins for industry players.
The intervention includes the government absorbing GH¢2.00 per litre on diesel and GH¢0.36 per litre on petrol as a temporary measure to ease the burden on consumers.
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Dr. Oppong explained that while the move offers short-term relief to the public, it involves cuts to critical margins that support the operations of OMCs.
“Government has intervened. This one you cannot take the credit. The government has slashed margins meant for operational expenditure,” he stated.
According to him, the reductions affect important components such as freight margins under the Price Differential Margin (PDM), the Unified Petroleum Pricing Fund (UPPF), and revenues used by institutions for internally generated funds and fuel marking activities.
He warned that reduced funding for fuel marking could weaken efforts to curb fuel adulteration and diversion, especially if the National Petroleum Authority lacks sufficient resources to sustain the programme.
Dr. Oppong also highlighted the financial strain the diesel price reduction policy places on OMCs, noting that companies are required to pre-finance part of the cost.
He explained that an OMC selling 10 million litres of diesel within four weeks would need to pre-finance about GH¢6.3 million while awaiting reimbursement from the UPPF.
He cautioned that any delays in reimbursement could lead to liquidity challenges, affecting working capital and daily operations.
“If these funds delay, that brings risk to the market. So indirectly we are burdening the OMC,” he added.
The government has indicated that the intervention will run for one month, during which it will monitor global oil price trends before deciding on any further action.
