Secretary of the Senior Staff Association of BOST, Ekow Sey claims that some Bulk Oil Distribution Companies (BDCs) and highly placed individuals, who form the cartel, have since October last year (2017), prevented BOST from importing petroleum products into the country.

Speaking to Citi Business News, Mr. Sey warned of dire consequences if nothing is done to break up the growing cartel within the petroleum sector.

“As we speak now, BOST is the only entity that has been given the mandate to ensure that we keep strategic stock for the country.  The question we should ask ourselves is that a state company that has been given such a huge responsibility, why is it that from October till date people are trying so hard to put obstacles in our way to bring in petroleum products for strategic reasons. For fuel insecurity, I can’t speak about it in detail but you can make some analogy and draw some inference and get your answer.”

Mr. Sey also highlighted the difficulty BOST faces in maintaining the needed level of strategic stocks of petroleum products, in the face of attacks from the cartel.

“The BDCs have no mandate to keep strategic stocks for the country. So they can dispose of any products they have. But in the event that there are issues and we run out of petroleum products, who is going to ensure that we have strategic stocks for the country? It is only BOST, and once we are not allowed now, with impediments and some obstacles being put in our line of operation, it is very clear that very soon there’ll be fuel shortage within our pumps and within the market.”

In an earlier statement to express their displeasure at developments within the petroleum industry attributable to cartels, the Senior and Junior Staff Associations asserted that the great cartel has been in the system for long and will only be suppressed when the President, the Vice President, Chief of Staff and the Energy Minister understand the important role that BOST can play to bring petroleum prices down.

“Government should know that in the deregulation petroleum regime like ours without any giant governmental agency playing a role;  even if the government removes all taxes the private sector which now controls the industry will replace it with profit in a smart way leaving the ordinary consumers in their vulnerable state; hence reducing taxes is not the ultimate option,” the statement added.

On the part of Mr. Mampaya, the Chairman of the Junior Staff Union he categorically stated that in most cases those in right positions to deal with the problems are given wrong advice.

He cautioned that if the government ignored their advice, “this great cartel whose members have made themselves kingmakers can worry the government in 2020 election because the ground is being prepared for that.”

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By: Bobbie Osei/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana

The post Fuel crisis looms over cartel in petroleum industry – BOST workers appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

In a statement, the executives of the two unions stated that BOST is the only institution with the adequate infrastructure and the human resource capacity to bring petroleum prices down.

[contextly_sidebar id=”nvsuCm1UOD2YwMsMXZRaPxfK04VqyYoP”]Thus, they have said the government should pay attention to them and ignore the persons within the company who have formed a great cartel that has dominated the industry.

Prior to the Easter break, the executives of the two unions; Abdul Jamil, Ekow Sey, Mr. Mampaya, and Mr Newton Godfred Amoh, spoke on several radio stations mainly in Accra and Kumasi, where they cautioned the government against a “great cartel” in the petroleum industry.

“…the government is preventing the same cartel from their illegal activities such as fuel dumping, diversion of premix fuel, diversion of marine fuel, adulteration of fuel etc. For this reason, they are not happy, and will therefore mislead the government by increasing fuel prices anyhow with the excuse that international fuel prices have gone up,” they said.

They further stated that the great cartel has been in the system for long and will only be suppressed when the President, the Vice President, Chief of Staff and the Energy Minister understand the important role that BOST can play to bring petroleum prices down.

“Government should know that in the deregulation petroleum regime like ours without any giant governmental agency playing a role;  even if the government removes all taxes the private sector which now controls the industry will replace it with profit in a smart way leaving the ordinary consumers in their vulnerable state; hence reducing taxes is not the ultimate option,” the statement added.

On the part of Mr. Mampaya, the Chairman of the Junior Staff Union he categorically stated that in most cases those in right positions to deal with the problems are given wrong advice.

He cautioned that if the government ignored their advice, “this great cartel whose members have made themselves kingmakers can worry the government in 2020 election because the ground is being prepared for that.”

Find below a section of the statement from the BOST unions

What is happening now is that BOST is crippled so petroleum market in the country has been taken over by the great cartel. On the contrary the government is preventing the same cartel from their illegal activities such as fuel damping, diversion of premix fuel, diversion of marine fuel, aldulteration of fuel etc. For this reason they are not happy and will therefore mislead the government by increasing fuel prices anyhow with the excuses that international fuel prices have gone up. They were enjoying all the illegal activities previously and will only be happy when that opportunity is available to them. To avoid this agenda of the great cartel, it is advisable to empower the 100% government owned BOST to compete with them so that their plans will be curtailed.

Mr Newton Godfred Amoh who is the secretary to the Local Union also said most of the members of the great cartel are highly rich and can easily influence government officials to act unreasonably. He said apart from Ghana there is nothing called BDCs anywhere in the world but here the BDCs are controlling the affairs to the extend that in 2014 they took the entire nation into ransom. He further stated that when the great cartel realised that BOST was planning to redeem Ghanaians from the burden of high petroleum prices, they quickly attacked the Managing Director with baseless, malicious, illogical and childish accusations to halt the intended plans. He added that the great cartel has a lot of incredible civil society groups as their members and they always hide behind such groups and sponsor them to throw dust into the eyes of Ghanaians.

During his turn Mr Ekoy Sey the secretary of the Senior Staff Union expressed dissatisfaction about the Bank of Ghana and the Ministry of Finance’s refusal to waive the single obligor limit on GCB to offer USD 120 million line of credit to BOST for petroleum product importation. He said the laws are made to make life easy for Ghanaians but not the opposite. He pointed out that today fuel price at the pump is about GHS4.51 per litre on the average leading to  GHS20.30 per gallon but if this waiver is granted BOST can bring the price down to about GHS 4.00 per litre and GHS 18.00 per gallon which will be affordable to all and most  importantly BOST will be able to maintain the same price for a very long time through the trading arrangement existing between BOST, GO Energy and Goil. He concluded that if the situation is not arrested the price will go up again in the next window thereby rendering the tax reduction granted useless.

Mr Abdul Jamil who is the Chairman of the Senior Staff union lamented that President Akufo-Addo should continue to repose confidence in the Managing Director of BOST, Mr Alfred Obeng Boateng because the man is hard-working, innovative, competent and above all the most incorruptible Managing Director the company  has had in recent years. “This is the man who has blocked most of the loopholes in the company and has attracted enemies to himself but has vowed to standby his plans to turn the company round in order to leave a mark irrespective of the subotage and the frustrations”.  What amazes the staff is that he has brought unity to the company, assign everybody contrary to the previous administration where some people were on old salary scale whilst others enjoyed new salary scale. A few people who are agents of the great cartel will soon be exposed and hope that the MD will sanction them accordingly. As we speak two staff suspected to leak fake information to outsiders have been interdicted and a five member committee has been set up to investigate them and submit their report  within 2 weeks. If found culpable I have no doubt of management sacking them summarily. “We cannot sit down for a few people to destroy BOST which is strategically positioned to serve the nation just because of their selfish interest which is always placed above the national interest”: Mr Abdul Jamil stated.

He enumerated some of the policies that the new Managing Director has brought to BOST which is causing all the hatred and dislike by the members of the great cartel. The excellent decisions to safe the company is the cause of the frequent attack on him since he assumed office in January 2017.

1. In the past the members of the great cartel could divert about 10 trucks each of 50000 litre of fuel and sold into their pockets leaving BOST in debt. Today such practices are things of the past because of the measures put in place by Mr Obeng. Thus he has reshuffled the loading terminal (APD) transmission team and many other things.
2. Another disturbing canker that had been eliminated which is also causing anger among the members of the great cartel is the policy that contaminated product can no longer be sold to BOST staff and any employee involved in causing it would face criminal trial. The result is that since the assumption of office by Mr Obeng the fuel contamination that was very rampant in the past has ceased. No contamination has happened since 25th January 2017 to date.
3. In the past products were sent to Burkina Faso, Mali, Liberia and sometimes Nigeria without any financial instruments to secure it. Till date there is a huge debt in our books against those foreign companies which cannot be traced. Perhaps it was one of the means that the members of the great cartel were siphoning BOST money. The present Managing Director said we cannot continue to injure our own national company so bad like that, henceforth any export must be on cash and carry transaction basis.
4. It may interest you to know that some BDCs were given products without invoice meaning they were getting the products free of charge at the expense of BOST and some of them still feel bitter when the new management put measures to eliminate such fraudulent practices in the company.
5. BDCs were storing their products in BOST system and some were either not paying the storage fees at all or paying for only one month irrespective of the number of months that the products were kept in the system. The incorruptible, competent  current Managing Director’s bold decision to ensure that every BDC pays for Storage and Rack fee fully and for storage fees on monthly basis has also offended the members of the great cartel.

Conclusion

The loopholes that Mr Obeng led administration has blocked are many and therefore he and his team deserve commendation and support from the media and the general public to be able to withstand the unnecessary attack directing to them periodically.

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By: citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post ‘Great cartel’ manipulating fuel prices – BOST staff warn gov’t appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Speaking at a Press conference in Accra, the Executive Secretary of COPEC, Duncan Amoah, said the deal, which cost the country a revenue loss of GHc30 million through the sale of 1.8 million barrels of crude oil to BB Energy, was avoidable.

[contextly_sidebar id=”VPRA0C8gAs3tR5ZyTHuiN8GpQUfcZ5ww”]“These were avoidable losses, completely avoidable and we have said that these monies could have come to the state. BOST would need to come again. All they’ve tried to do are gymnastics…and that is the more reason we have decided as a chamber to pursue this matter to the logical conclusion through the Special Prosecutor’s office. A lot of questions remain unanswered.  We released a single report and BOST have had to somersault seven times in one week,” he added.

[contextly_sidebar id=”VPRA0C8gAs3tR5ZyTHuiN8GpQUfcZ5ww”]Duncan Amoah last week accused BOST of causing financial loss to the state over the alleged sale of crude to BB Energy below the international market price.

The Managing Director of BOST, Obeng Boateng, however rubbished the claims and described them as false and baseless.

Mr. Obeng Boateng said Duncan Amoah was simply an “enemy to the progress” and should “be ignored at all times.”

But the COPEC Executive Director at the press conference said he stands by his claims.

“It is not surprising that BB Energy wrote two months after the shameful purchase of the crude from BOST for license from the NPA which was declined. Our checks further indicate that BB Energy as of today is still paying for the crude. They have not finished paying six months after the transaction. What we gather further is that when TOR processes the crude, BB Energy picks and makes payments to BOST. So like we’ve said earlier, what really changed is the ownership and giving of the product to BB Energy. Nothing useful, nothing purposeful, no gain ever came to Ghana as far as that crude is concerned.”

“When BOST engages in these inefficient transactions that leave BOST with huge debts, it is not the BOST managing Director or anyone at BOST that is paying for it. It is the average Ghanaian who will be asked at a later day to pay it.  As we speak, BOST is reeling under a debt of almost GHc900 million,” Duncan Amoah added.

Energy committee to probe BOST

The Mines and Energy Committee of Parliament had already waded into the latest controversy saying it will probe the matter.

According to the Chairman of the Committee, Emmanuel Akwasi Gyamfi, BOST and other interested parties in the matter will be engaged to better inform the Committee on how to deal with the issue.

“We engaged BOST before this issue came up, and we were scheduled to meet them again when this issue came up. We want to take our time and meet them and do proper due diligence; we have to get the necessary documentation so that we can reach an informed decision,” he said.

BOST MD sues Duncan Amoah

Alfred Obeng Boateng, has subsequently sued Duncan Amoah demanding GHc5 million in damages.

According to Mr. Obeng Boateng, Mr. Amoah made a false claim when he suggested that he [ Alfred Obeng Boateng] through his agents, had threatened to take his life, following the fresh allegations of financial malfeasance he levelled against him and the BOST.

2017 contaminated fuel scandal

In 2017, BOST was widely criticized for selling 5 million litres of contaminated fuel to two unlicensed companies, Movenpinaa and Zup Oil, which were allegedly set up a few days before the sale, costing Ghana about GHc 7 million in revenue.

The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) also confirmed that the two companies alleged to have purchased the over 5 million litres of contaminated fuel under suspicious circumstances from BOST were not licensed.

According to the NPA, it was going to take legal action against the firms, while it conducted further investigations.

The Energy Minister, Boakye Agyarko, also set up an investigative committee to look into the matter, which eventually cleared BOST and its Managing Director, Alfred Obeng Boateng of wrongdoing, citing a Bureau of National Investigation (BNI) and National Security reports.

There were however calls to initiate fresh investigations into the matter amid discontent from the Minority in Parliament and some Civil Society groups.

As a result of the scandal, the Energy Minister stated that private firms were no longer allowed to lift contaminated oil from BOST as part of interim measures to prevent the supply of contaminated fuel onto the Market.

–

By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post COPEC to petition Special Prosecutor to probe BOST appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Executive Secretary of the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC), Duncan Amoah, has accused BOST of causing financial loss to the state to the tune of some 30 million dollars when it sold about 1.8 million barrels of oil below the market price to an unlicensed company.

[contextly_sidebar id=”3fCwqIIMx3o0K1jeGCFIs5GpwXgV2XeK”]According to the Chairman of the Committee, Emmanuel Akwasi Gyamfi, BOST and other interested parties in the matter will be engaged to better inform the Committee on how to deal with the issue.

“We engaged BOST before this issue came up, and we were scheduled to meet them again when this issue came up. We want to take our time and meet them and do proper due diligence; we have to get the necessary documentation so that we can reach an informed decision,” he said.

The Managing Director of the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company (BOST), Alfred Obeng Boateng, has so far denied allegations of financial malfeasance against the company by the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC), saying they are false and baseless.

The explanation for ‘discount’

Mr. Obeng Boateng noted that, the oil in question could not have been sold at the official price because of the amount of time that had passed between the time of purchase and sale.

“In his [Duncan Amoah] statement, he exposed his ignorance when he stated that at the international level Quaibo Crude is sold at Brent plus $0.85 per barrel as official price, and therefore BOST has caused financial loss to the state by selling its own at a discount of $2 per barrel. It must be noted here that a cargo imported with the aim of refining or using for one purpose but did not materialize and reselling it about 10 months later, cannot be sold at the official price. Such a product is considered distress and is always sold at a discount globally.”

“As we speak, BOST has offers for such distress cargoes at a discount of $4 per barrel. Any person competent in the industry would have asked for the details before issuing this illogical and baseless statement actuated by malice and selfish interest to mislead the good people of Ghana. Thus keeping the crude for such a period may affect the quality and for that matter the yield, hence the assay is a factor in pricing,” he explained.

 Below is the full statement

Bost MD Reacts to Dancun Amoah False Allegations

To commence I would like to put it on record that Duncan Amoah the so-called executive secretary of Copec is an enemy to the progress of BOST. He should, therefore, be ignored at all times.

Duncan Amoah is one of the people being used to used to distract the new administration through false, baseless, needless and malicious publications against BOST since the assumption of office by Mr Alfred Obeng, the current Managing Director of Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Limited for no other reason but for their personal and selfish individual interest.

We are not insulated from criticism but criticism must be constructive and logic devoid of personal interest and malice.

The statement issued about BOST by Dancun Amoah, a man who is an enemy to the progress of BOST is not only unfortunate and misleading but a clear sign of his ignorance about the petroleum industry that he is deceiving the media and the general public that he has a rich knowledgeable in.

In his statement, he exposed his ignorance when he stated that at the international level Quaibo Crude is sold at Brent plus $0.85 per barrel as official price and therefore BOST has caused financial loss to the state by selling its own at a discount of $2 per barrel. It must be noted here that a cargo imported with the aim of refining or using for one purpose but did not materialise and reselling it about 10 months later cannot be sold at the official price. Such a product is considered distress and is always sold at a discount globally. As we speak BOST has offered for such distress cargoes at a discount of $4 per barrel. Any person competent in the industry would have asked for the details of the assay before issuing this illogical and baseless statement actuated by malice and selfish interest to mislead the good people of Ghana. Thus keeping the crude for such a period may affect the quality and for that matter the yield, hence the assay is a factor in pricing.

He further stated that crude price hit $70 per barrel in January 2018. Is he saying that BOST should have waited until that time before selling the product? If that is what he wanted to put across then it is better he swallows it because same will expose his weakness in analysing commercial decisions. If that is what he thinks then it is equally advisable for BOST to have waited and sold it somewhere the year 2050 perhaps crude price may hit $150 per barrel. Duncan Amoah should revise his notes very well if indeed he had ever had education in petroleum otherwise he should seek admission to study certificate in petroleum in order for him to have the required competencies to criticise constructively.

If Duncan Amoah meant well the first thing to do is to find out the rationale behind such decision be it commercial or not. But you cannot just get up and issue such statement that has potential to damage reputation of your fellow human beings and the very company that belongs to all of us as Ghanaians because of your individual interest of looking for cheap money.

His allegation that when selling the crude BOST did not involve Tema Oil Refinery where the crude was kept again shows how naive Dancun Amoah is in the petroleum downstream industry. What role would TOR play when BOST is selling its own product? When BDCs are selling their products in BOST  system does BOST get involve? BOST only informed TOR of the new owner with a release letter as the practice in the industry.

Further allegation that BB Energy processed the crude at TOR without a license is outside the mandate of BOST and therefore Dancun Amoah should find out the exact arrangement BB Energy had with TOR and NPA before accusing BOST since same is outside BOST responsibilities. He thinks BB Energy did so illegally he can report same to NPA to sanction them.

Commenting on the tolling fees charged by TOR, again this is outside BOST mandate but in any event the Managing Director of TOR and his team have been given the mandate to take decisions that will promote the success of the company hence can take a commercial decision in the interest of TOR.  Assuming that the tolling fee was $3.5 per barrel against $4 or $4.5 per barrel at the international level, does Dancun Amoah know the factors underlying TOR decision to accept the $3.5?

One of the major factors in deciding tolling fee is the efficiency of the refinery, which Duncan Amoah did not mention but jump to accuse people of wrongdoing. He cannot run down state institutions anyhow just because of his personal interest?

Again it is clear from the statement that Duncan Amoah so-called executive secretary of Copec lacks both fact of the transaction and the knowledge in the petroleum downstream industry.  First of all the crude sold to BB Energy was 942000 barrels but not 1.8 million barrels as he claims.

For his information, 1 million barrels of the TEN crudes was being refined when TOR broke down. The remaining was given back to the supplier called AOT to set off our indebtedness to that company. So where did he Dancun Amoah get this 1.8  million barrels crude alleged to have sold to BB Energy from?

We are appealing to the media and the general public to ignore this man and his so called Copec formed for personal gains at the expense of the national interest.

The same person has been complaining about rising of fuel prices and at the same time distracting the very company that requires a peaceful mind to strategize to stabilise fuel prices in the market.  Everyday management is having crisis meeting because of these false and misleading publications thereby preventing management from concentrating on its core mandate. Ghanaians and the media should not allow this selfish individual to fool us by placing his interest above the national interest.

Anybody interested in his frivolous statement can come to BOST offices to verify the truth or otherwise.

On the issue of a death threat, the Managing Director has already instructed his lawyers to take legal action and will soon be communicated to the general public. On this falsehood and malicious publication about the company, the board had referred the matter to its legal community to advise the Board within 24 hours.

According to the Managing Director, the public should continue repose confidence in him because he will never take any decision that will not promote the success of BOST.

Signed: Mr. Alfred Obeng Boateng, MD For BOST.

–

By: Farida Yusif/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Energy C’ttee to probe BOST over COPEC’s allegations appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The alleged death threats are currently being investigated by the Tema Regional Police.

[contextly_sidebar id=”YxilvOBQw2zUVErWnFaAvUk8qWmu3wO2″]The BOST MD, Alfred Obeng Boateng, has sued Mr. Amoah contending that the claims that his associate issued the death threats were false.

He is seeking an injunction keeping Mr. Amoah from making such claims as well as GHc5 million in damages.

Mr. Amoah, speaking on Eyewitness News, however said he was yet to be served with the writ, adding that “this is a summons that our lawyers will equally deal with.”

He said he hoped Mr. Obeng Boateng would have waited for police investigations to end before taking such legal action.

“What I can say is that investigations into this is already underway with the Tema Police and one would have expected that we would at least get to end of the investigation so that if there is no substance in those threats, Mr. Obeng Boateng would have pursued another avenue.”

He maintained that the death threats were real and that “for three days, I have had to go without sleeping in my own house and that clearly is not a very pleasant situation.”

Background to death threats

At the centre of the threats are allegations that BOST cost the state GHC 23 million in revenue by selling some crude oil at a discount to an unregistered company.

According to Mr. Amoah, about 1.8 million barrels of crude oil was sold in the said transaction in September 2017.

He narrated that someone who claimed to be a friend of the BOST MD called him asking to meet over the claims.

“At the initial stage, all he [The caller] tried to sound nice suggesting that we should meet and see if there are compromises… When I objected he said the threats begun from some numbers,” he recounted.

“The person came trying to get a gentleman’s agreement from me as far as the report we have put together about the BOST transaction is concerned. When that backfired, they now resorted to threats and attempts to take me out completely.”

Despite the suit, Mr. Amoah said he would stick by his assertions.

“They should prepare Nsawam [Prison for me] because I would be willing to spend 1,000 years just fighting for what is right… If you sold Duncan Amoah, you wont get 5 million. He should rather go and do a criminal thing such that I can just go [to prison]. I am only asking questions and I will not keep quiet.”

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post I’ll face BOST MD in court over ‘death threat’- Duncan Amoah appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

In a strongly-worded statement, Mr. Obeng Boateng said Duncan Amoah was simply an “enemy to the progress” and should “be ignored at all times.”

This was in response to claims by Duncan Amoah that Ghana lost about GHc23 million in revenue when 1.8 million barrels of crude oil was sold at a discount to an unlicensed company.

He alleged that the discount was at two dollars a barrel when prices on the international market were on the rise.

But Mr. Obeng Boateng in a statement said the COPEC boss was being used to distract the new BOST administration “through false, baseless, needless and malicious publications… for no other reason but for their personal and selfish individual interest.”

The BOST MD held that if Duncan Amoah had genuine concerns, he would have approached BOST through more appropriate avenues as opposed to public utterances.

“If Duncan Amoah meant well, the first thing to do is to find out the rationale behind such decision be it commercial or not. But you cannot just get up and issue such statement that has potential to damage reputation of your fellow human beings and the very company that belongs to all of us as Ghanaians because of your individual interest of looking for cheap money.”

Mr. Obeng Boateng lamented further that, “everyday management [of BOST] is having crisis meeting because of these false and misleading publications thereby preventing management from concentrating on its core mandate.”

“Ghanaians and the media should not allow this selfish individual to fool us by placing his interest above the national interest, he added.

Explanation for ‘discount’

Mr. Obeng Boateng noted that, the oil in question could not have been sold at the official price because of the amount of time that had passed between the time of purchase and sale.

“In his [Duncan Amoah] statement, he exposed his ignorance when he stated that at the international level Quaibo Crude is sold at Brent plus $0.85 per barrel as official price, and therefore BOST has caused financial loss to the state by selling its own at a discount of $2 per barrel. It must be noted here that a cargo imported with the aim of refining or using for one purpose but did not materialize and reselling it about 10 months later, cannot be sold at the official price. Such a product is considered distress and is always sold at a discount globally.”

“As we speak, BOST has offers for such distress cargoes at a discount of $4 per barrel. Any person competent in the industry would have asked for the details before issuing this illogical and baseless statement actuated by malice and selfish interest to mislead the good people of Ghana. Thus keeping the crude for such a period may affect the quality and for that matter the yield, hence the assay is a factor in pricing,” he explained.

Find below the full statement

Bost MD Reacts to Duncan Amoah False Allegations

To commence I would like to put it on record that Duncan Amoah the so-called executive secretary of Copec is an enemy to the progress of BOST. He should therefore be ignored at all times.

Duncan Amoah is one of the people being used to used to distract the new administration through false, baseless, needless and malicious publications against BOST since the assumption of office by Mr Alfred Obeng, the current Managing Director of Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Limited for no other reason but for their personal and selfish individual interest.

We are not insulated from criticism but criticism must be constructive and logic devoid of personal interest and malice.

The statement issued about BOST by Duncan Amoah, a man who is an enemy to the progress of BOST is not only unfortunate and misleading but a clear sign of his ignorance about the petroleum industry that he is deceiving the media and the general public that he has a rich knowledgeable in.

In his statement, he exposed his ignorance when he stated that at the international level Quaibo Crude is sold at Brent plus $0.85 per barrel as official price and therefore BOST has caused financial loss to the state by selling its own at a discount of $2 per barrel. It must be noted here that a cargo imported with the aim of refining or using for one purpose but did not materialise and reselling it about 10 months later cannot be sold at the official price. Such a product is considered distress and is always sold at a discount globally. As we speak BOST has offers for such distress cargoes at a discount of $4 per barrel. Any person competent in the industry would have asked for the details of the assay before issuing this illogical and baseless statement actuated by malice and selfish interest to mislead the good people of Ghana. Thus keeping the crude for such a period may affect the quality and for that matter the yield, hence the assay is a factor in pricing.

He further stated that crude price hit $70 per barrel in January 2018. Is he saying that BOST should have waited to that time before selling the product? If that is what he wanted to put across then it is better he swallows it because same will expose his weakness in analysing commercial decisions. If that is what he thinks then it is equally advisable for BOST to have waited and sell it somewhere the year 2050 perhaps crude price may hit $150 per barrel. Duncan Amoah should revise his notes very well if indeed he had ever had education in petroleum otherwise he should seek admission to study certificate in petroleum in order for him to have the required competent to criticise constructively.

If Duncan Amoah meant well the first thing to do is to find out the rationale behind such decision be it commercial or not. But you cannot just get up and issue such statement that has potential to damage reputation of your fellow human beings and the very company that belongs to all of us as Ghanaians because of your individual interest of looking for cheap money.

His allegation that when selling the crude BOST did not involve Tema Oil Refinery where the crude was kept again shows how naive Dancun Amoah is in the petroleum downstream industry. What role would TOR play when BOST is selling its own product? When BDCs are selling their products in BOST  system does BOST get involve? BOST only informed TOR of the new owner with a release letter as the practice in the industry.

Further allegation that BB Energy processed the crude at TOR without license is outside the mandate of BOST and therefore Dancun Amoah should find out the exact arrangement BB Energy had with TOR and NPA before accusing BOST since same is outside BOST responsibilities. He thinks BB Energy did so illegally he can report same to NPA to sanction them.

Commenting on the tolling fees charged by TOR, again this is outside BOST mandate but in any event the Managing Director of TOR and his team have been given the mandate to take decisions that will promote the success of the company hence can take commercial decision in the interest of TOR.  Assuming that the tolling fee was $3.5 per barrel against $4 or $4.5 per barrel at the international level, does Dancun Amoah know the factors underlying TOR decision to accept the $3.5?

One of major factors in deciding tolling fee is the efficiency of the refinery, which Duncan Amoah did not mention but jump to accuse people of wrongdoing. He cannot run down state institutions any how just because of his personal interest?

Again it is clear from the statement that Duncan Amoah so called executive secretary of Copec lacks both fact of the transaction and the knowledge in the petroleum downstream industry.  First of all the crude sold to BB Energy was 942000 barrels but not 1.8 million barrels as he claims.

For his information 1 million barrels of the TEN crude was being refined when TOR broke down. The remaining was given back to the supplier called AOT to set off our indebtedness to that company. So where did he Dancun Amoah get this 1.8  million barrels crude alleged to have sold to BB Energy from?

We are appealing to the media and the general public to ignore this man and his so called Copec formed for personal gains at the expense of the national interest.

The same person has been complaining about rising of fuel prices and at the same time distracting the very company that requires peaceful mind to strategize to stabilise fuel prices in the market.  Everyday management is having crisis meeting because of these false and misleading publications thereby preventing management from concentrating on its core mandate. Ghanaians and the media should not allow this selfish individual to fool us by placing his interest above the national interest.

Anybody interested in his frivilous statement can come to BOST offices to verify the truth or otherwise.

On the issue of death threat the Managing Director has already instructed his lawyers to take legal action and will soon be communicated to the general public. On this falsehood and malicious publication about the company, the board had referred the matter to its legal community to advise the Board within 24 hours.

According to the Managing Director, the public should continue repose confidence in him because he will never take any decision that will not promote the success of BOST.

Signed: Mr. Alfred Obeng Boateng, MD For BOST.

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post BOST MD slams Duncan Amoah over ‘baseless’ allegations appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The event, scheduled for Saturday, April 7, is under the auspices of the president of the Council, Katakyie Kwasi Bumankama II.

Second Lady, Samira Bawumia, is the guest of honour for the event billed to be attended by key political figures, including a number of ministers of state.

Mr. Boateng was appointed by President Nana Akufo-Addo in January last year. He is a legal practitioner with a speciality in oil and gas.

Until his appointment, he was the Chief Executive Officer of Approachers Group of Companies and has over 20 years experience in the industry.

He studied at the University of Buckingham in the United Kingdom where he graduated with LLB (Laws) and proceeded to study for his Master’s Degree in the same university.

He was awarded LLM in International Commercial Law with Oil and Gas specialisation.

Alfred Obeng Boateng has received several international awards for distinguishing himself in the discharge of his duties.

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By: Sammi Wiafe/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post BOST MD to be honoured by Sefwi Wiawso Traditional Council appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

He noted that there was no clarification whether the over $335 million debt incurred by previous BOST administrations had been cleared.

[contextly_sidebar id=”JCFveQx6ZsvO0QuYtDUGZwg5y1UvRAos”]Whilst saying he had “no cause” to doubt the claims of the current leadership of BOST in posting a GHC 35m profit in ten months, he said he needed some clarification on exactly what financial strategies were adopted to clear the legacy and current debts of BOST before declaring profit in 2017.”

Mr. Cudjoe explained that, his skepticism stemmed from previous “strange outcomes” at BOST, with respect to the declaration of profits.

“…For instance, on August 11, 2015, the immediate past BOST CEO under the NDC government told Ghanaians BOST made a $21m profit under his able leadership. A couple of months later, on December 20, 2016, we were told BOST had posted a GHC 32m loss.”

“Here we are a year on in December 2017, and a new management tells us BOST has made a GHC 35m profit as a result of great leadership without any details of how almost $335m debt incurred by the previous and current regimes have been paid,” Mr. Cudjoe observed.

In the view of Mr. Cudjoe, it is ultimately “difficult to believe BOST can ever make profits.”

Mr. Cudjoe explained among other things that, this is because BOST’s “truncated mandate has been selling oil products meant to be strategically held in trust for the state, to the public at artificially low prices in its quest to compete with private companies that have been licensed to sell same products at competitive rates.”

Find below his full statement

The Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company (BOST) seems to be following in the footsteps of the State Transport Company (STC) in declaring profits in less than a year under their respective leaderships. This is commendable indeed, except, I haven’t seen the dummy cheque from BOST, indicating the total dividends it will be paying to government.

I had witnessed the presentation of a $700,000 cheque by the CEO of STC to the Finance Minister at an event that bemoaned the economic inefficiency of state-owned enterprises in spite of their great potential. Never mind if STC’s successes were in part due to the efforts of the immediate past CEO under the previous government- what matters is the rather open, transparent and efficient manner the challenges of STC were dealt with then and now.

Now, I have no cause to doubt the claims of the current leadership of BOST in posting a GHC 35m profit in ten months. However, I need a little clarification on exactly what financial strategies were adopted to clear the legacy and current debts of BOST before declaring profit in 2017. My recollection of these debts is essentially;

1. partially unpaid debts of $100m in 2008 incurred due to the sale of Ghana’s strategic oil reserves at below market prices.
2. Unpaid debts of $235m in 2014 due to the sale of Ghana’s strategic oil reserves yet again at below market prices.
3. An additional but increasing $100m of trade losses being incurred in 2017 solely due to selling Ghana’s strategic oil reserves at heavily subsidized prices.

You see, there is a history of similar claims by previous managers of BOST only for strange outcomes after a few months. For instance, on August 11, 2015, the immediate past BOST CEO under the NDC government told Ghanaians BOST made a $21m profit under his able leadership. A couple of months later, on December 20, 2016, we were told BOST had posted a GHC 32m loss.  Here we are a year on in December 2017and a new management tells us BOST has made a GHC 35m profit as a result of great leadership without any details of how almost $335m debt incurred by the previous and current regimes have been paid.

Can BOST walk us through how they made a GHC 35m profit in ten months against all the above?

Folks let us face it, it is difficult to believe BOST can ever make profit, when its truncated mandate has been selling oil products meant to be strategically held in trust for the state, to the public at artificially low prices in its quest to compete with private companies that have been licensed to sell same products at competitive rates. These significant losses in the sale of oil products are politically induced to benefit state assigns. In the end, you and I have to cough up the levies to bail out a wasting state company that should not be trading oil reserves it is mandated to hold for at least six weeks with options to dispose of and replenish stocks without artificially upsetting the market with suppressed prices and changes in the physical properties of oil products.

It seems to me the State Enterprises Commission and the Finance Ministry must take one critical look at BOST and I will not be surprised if they came to the conclusion that the best way to strategically hold oil products in trust for us would be to let private oil companies do so with some financial assurance, because BOST, by its structure and operations easily lends itself to rent seeking and economic atrophy.

Thank you,

Franklin Cudjoe, IMANI.

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post BOST must come clean on Ghc35m profit claim – Franklin Cudjoe appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

This, he said, is part of interim measures to prevent the supply of contaminated fuel onto the Market following the BOST scandal where some 5 million liters of the contaminated fuel, was wrongly sold to Movenpinna Energy and Zup Oil, sparking fears that they might have been sold to unsuspecting consumers.

The National Petroleum Authority, NPA, however clarified that the fuel was not sold to the public.

[contextly_sidebar id=”02DtlIVincpwVnjBE4B2pgw63ElWr0CX”]Responding to questions on the floor of Parliament, Boakye Agyarko said the Ministerial Committee charged with investigating the scandal had not completed its work, but their report would be submitted to the Mines and Energy Committee of the House when ready, after which a white paper will be issued on it.

“One of the interim measures is that no longer will individuals be allowed to lift contaminated products out of BOST,” he said.

Boakye Agyarko explained that they have taken this decision because it usually becomes difficult to track the whereabouts of products lifted from BOST.

“We also noted that as soon as products were lifted out of BOST, you lost control of its track. As an interim measure, it is only BOST with its BVRs that can lift products to designated end-use consumers under the care and control of BOST. No longer are private companies allowed to lift products to unknown destinations. This became obvious during the preliminary investigation conducted by FDA itself whose preliminary results were released to the public. So we are taking the obvious which can remediate some of these deficiencies and shortfalls,” he added.

BOST contaminated fuel saga

BOST took centre stage in the media in July 2017, after it emerged that it had sold 5 million litres of contaminated fuel to two unlicensed companies, Movepiina and Zup Oil, which were allegedly set up a few days before the sale, causing Ghana to lose about GHc 7 million in revenue.

The Energy Ministry subsequently cleared BOST of any wrongdoing but the minority said they suspect it was an attempt to cover up the alleged rot.

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By: Godwin A. Allotey & Duke Mensah Opoku/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post Private firms barred from lifting BOST’s contaminated fuel – Agyarko appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

According to the Coalition, Mr. Obeng acted unlawfully when he ordered the sale of the fuel to two unlicensed businesses.

[contextly_sidebar id=”mU8cBdZiqqD0GhIbvbtCf6xVZ5kMdLRy”]The group is thus urging CHRAJ to probe matter in line with article 218(a) of the 1992 Constitution, and section 7(I) of the CHRAJ Act (Act 456) of 1993.

In the petition, the Coalition said its “careful examination of the dubious circumstances under which five million litres of contaminated fuel were sold by BOST to some unlicensed businesses and the unlawful manner in which he conducted himself with respect to the whole matter, we are of the firm opinion that the Managing Director of BOST, Mr. Alfred Obeng, has abused his powers as a Public Officer, for which he must be sanctioned in accordance with the law.”

The group also noted the absence of a board at BOST at the time the sale of the contaminated fuel was authorized, adding that the BOST MD acted  “unilaterally in the sale of the contaminated fuel.”

It held that, he acted “without any notification to the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), which is the regulator of the downstream petroleum sector, and the Ministry of Energy, which is the supervising Ministry of the sector.”

BOST was heavily criticized after it emerged it sold 5 million litres of contaminated fuel to two unlicensed companies, Movepiina and Zup Oil, which were allegedly set up few days before the sale, costing Ghana about GHc 7 million in revenue.

The Minister of Energy, who tasked a committee to investigate the issue, subsequently cleared BOST and its Managing Director, Alfred Obeng Boateng of wrongdoing, citing a Bureau of National Investigation (BNI), and National Security report.

The Minority in Parliament described government’s handling of the saga as insulting, and contended that the BNI and the Energy Ministry are engaged in a collusion to cover up the alleged rot to save the Managing Director, Alfred Obeng.

 Find below the full petition

22nd September 2017

THE COMMISSIONER

COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS &

ADMINISTRATIVE JUSTICE (CHRAJ)

Dear Sir,

PETITION TO INVESTIGATE MR. ALFRED OBENG, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF BOST, FOR ABUSE OF POWER.

Respectfully Sir, the Coalition for Social Justice (CSJ) is a duly registered Civil Society Organization with a prime objective of fighting injustice in all its manifestations and ensuring the judicious use of power by public officers.

In accordance with article 218(a) of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana and section 7(i) of the CHRAJ ACT (ACT 456) of 1993, we invoke the jurisdiction of CHRAJ to investigate Mr. Alfred Obeng, the Managing Director of BOST for ABUSE OF POWER relative to the sale of five (5) million litres of Contaminated Fuel to some businesses in Ghana.

After our careful examination of the dubious circumstances under which five (5) million litres of contaminated fuel was sold by BOST to some unlicensed businesses and the unlawful manner in which Mr. Alfred Obeng conducted himself with respect to the whole matter, we are of the firm opinion that the Managing Director of BOST, Mr. Alfred Obeng, has abused his powers as a Public Officer, for which he must be sanctioned in accordance with law.

Without further ado, we proceed to outline the facts and particulars of our case as follows:

1. On the 18th of January 2017, five (5) million litres of fuel got contaminated at the premises of BOST by the accidental mixture of diesel and petrol. This claim was made by BOST in a press release dated 22nd June 2017, a copy of which is attached as “Exhibit A”.
2. There was no public announcement or newspaper advertisement of the intention of BOST to sell the contaminated fuel. However, an unregistered business, purportedly trading as Movenpinaa Energy heard of the availability of the exact volumes of the contaminated fuel and requested in a letter dated 19th May 2017 and addressed to the Managing Director of BOST, to purchase all the five (5) million litres of contaminated fuel. A copy of the said letter is attached herewith and marked as “Exhibit B”.
3. The May 19th 2017 letter from Movenpinaa Energy was received at BOST on 2nd June 2017. On the same day of the receipt of the letter, Mr. Alfred Obeng the Managing Director of BOST unilaterally accepted the offer of Movenpinaa Energy and directed that the entire five (5) million litres contaminated fuel should be given to Movenpinaa Energy at a unit price of one Ghana cedi (GH₵1.00) on an open credit basis. Evidence of this fact can be found on the face of “Exhibit B”.
4. In spite of the sale of the 5 million litres contaminated fuel to Movenpinaa Energy, the contaminated fuel was kept at the Accra Plains Depot of BOST at a cost to the state. This fact is evident in “Exhibit C” which is herewith attached.
5. Movenpinaa Energy after slapping its profit margin on every litre of the contaminated fuel and without expending or investing a pesewa of its resources, sold and requested BOST to transfer 2 million litres of the contaminated fuel it had illegally acquired from BOST which was still being kept at the Accra Plains Depot (APD) of BOST, to a company called MACWEST. Subsequently, Movenpinaa Energy sold 470,000 litres of the remainder to another company called ZUP OIL. Copies of the letters containing these transactions are attached and marked as “Exhibit D”.

We further aver that:

1. There was no governing Board at BOST at the time of the sale of the contaminated fuel by BOST to Movenpinaa Energy and the Managing Director, Mr. Alfred Obeng acted unilaterally in the sale of the contaminated fuel.
2. Mr. Alfred Obeng unilaterally directed the sale of the contaminated fuel to Movenpinaa Energy without any notification to the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) which is the regulator of the downstream petroleum sector and the Ministry of Energy which is the supervising ministry of the sector.
3. The five (5) million litres of contaminated Fuel was sold to Movenpinaa Energy by BOST under the direction of its MD, Mr. Alfred Obeng without following legally laid down procurement processes thereby contravening Sections 16(2)(c), 40(1), 35, 83 and 84 of the Public Procurement Act (Act 663) of 2003. This fact was corroborated by Mr. Alfred Obeng in an interview with Atinka FM, a private radio station in Accra. An audio recording of the said interview is contained on a CD ROM marked as “Exhibit E” and enclosed in the envelope.
4. The MD of BOST, Mr. Alfred Obeng, was not fair and candid in the way and manner he unilaterally sold all the 5 million litres of contaminated fuel to Movenpinaa Energy. His flagrant disregard of public procurement processes in the sale of the contaminated fuel was not only unlawful but discriminatory, biased, arbitrary and capricious thereby contravening article 296 of 1992 constitution of Ghana.
5. That at all times material to the sale of the contaminated fuel by BOST, Movenpinaa Energy had not been licensed by the NPA to trade in petroleum products in the downstream petroleum sector of Ghana. The sale of the contaminated fuel to Movenpinaa Energy by BOST under the direction of its MD, Mr Alfred Obeng was therefore unlawful and breached sections 11 and 32 of the NPA Act (ACT 691) of 2005. The fact of this illegality was confirmed by the NPA in a press statement dated 27th June 2017 a copy of which is attached and marked as “Exhibit F”.
6. That at all times material to the sale of volumes of contaminated fuel by Movenpinaa Energy to ZUP OIL and MACWEST, neither companies had been duly licensed by the NPA to engage in any commercial activity in the downstream petroleum sector. Therefore, the sale of 470,000 and 2 million litres of contaminated fuel to ZUP OIL and MACWEST respectively breached sections 11 and 32 of the NPA Act (ACT 691) of 2005 rendering the transactions unlawful. The tacit involvement of the BOST MD, Mr. Alfred Obeng in those transactions was unlawful and irresponsible.
7. It was bad governance practice for Mr. Alfred Obeng to have dealt with Movenpinaa Energy at a time it was not duly registered and incorporated under the laws of Ghana. This is because documents available from the Registrar General’s Department show that Movenpinaa Energy was registered as a sole proprietorship business under the Registration of Business Names Act (ACT 151) 1962, on 1st June 2017. However, records show that Movenpinaa Energy fraudulently came by a letter head and requested to buy the contaminated fuel from BOST in a letter dated 19th May 2017, eleven clear days before its incorporation as evident in “Exhibit B”. Copies of the incorporation documents of Movenpinaa Energy are attached and marked as “Exhibit G”.

It is also instructive to point out that, Mr. Alfred as a Public Officer is required to act in accordance with the laws of Ghana at all times. His conduct in this saga flies in the face of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers which provides that:

Principle 1.1 – Public Officers shall honour and abide by the Constitution and laws of Ghana in the performance of their official duties with dignity, integrity and professionalism.

1.1.1.   Pubic Officers in the performance of their official duties shall act with professionalism and integrity.

1.1.2.   Public Officers shall serve the State with honesty, fairness, integrity, neutrality and impartiality.

CONCLUSION

It is the contention of the Coalition for Social Justice that the Managing Director of BOST, Mr. Alfred Obeng, abused his powers when he acted unlawfully in the sale of five (5) million litres of contaminated fuel to Movenpinaa Energy by violating the National Petroleum Authority Act (ACT 691) 2005, the Public Procurement Act (ACT 663) 2003 and the Code of Conduct for Public Officers as outlined above.

We hereby request the Commission on Human Rights & Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to launch a full-scale investigation into this matter in line with its mandate under article 218(a) of the 1992 Constitution and section 7(I) of the CHRAJ Act (Act 456) of 1993.

We further wish to indicate our preparedness to co-operate with the Commission to investigate the matters raised in this petition in order to unearth the truth.

We believe that the unlawful and arbitrary manner in which Mr. Alfred Obeng conducted himself in this matter amounts to ABUSE OF POWER.

It is our prayer that the Commission recommends the removal from office of Mr. Alfred Obeng to the appropriate authorities and deals with him in accordance with law if found culpable.

“EHIBIT H” are copies of other documents which will aid your investigation into this matter.

Respectfully submitted.

Yours faithfully,

…………………………….

SAMMY GYAMFI

CONVEYNOR

TEL: (0547681777)

…………………………….

ABASS NURUDEEN

OPERATIONS DIRECTOR

Tel: (026 969 0922)

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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