The Chamber of Oil Marketing Companies says it will sanction members who overprice their products following the implementation of new energy sector levies.
This is to ensure that members comply with directives from the industry regulator National Petroleum Authority (NPA).
The ex-pump prices of petroleum products have gone up by about 27 percent with the introduction of new taxes and levies on the energy sector.
[contextly_sidebar id=”DufgEC9CfUBEzlq2Yf6LJhUDfSKriVIG”]Policy think tanks like ACEP have challenged the rate of increase.
Speaking to Citi Business News, the industrial coordinator of the OMCs, Kwaku Agyemang Duah said the chamber will not hesitate to sanction members who attempt to charge more.
He however says members are in the meantime complying with the directive.
“The NPA wrote to us on the 31st of December informing us of the new taxes and levies which we have to impose on the average consumer…what we have is a deregulated environment, each OMC decides how it is going to price its products taking into cognizance all the taxes and levies and the negotiated ex-refinery price and the circumstances they find themselves in. My responsibility is to ensure that they comply with the latter what the regulator (NPA) is saying.” Mr. Ayemang Duah stated.
Mr. Agyemang Duah adds the OMC Chamber will strengthen its supervision to ensure members comply with the obligation of filing their returns realized from the imposition of the taxes.
“Taxes and levies are such that if you joke with it either we have to pay the taxes even when we are collecting and you don’t pay on time, we are surcharged with a penalty even this collection of taxes is a huge task for us now that how it has been given a quantum leap,” he further said.
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By: Pius Amihere Eduku/Citifmonline.com/Ghana