The first consignment of the Gold for Oil Policy by the government has arrived at the Tema Port.

According to reports, the 41,000 metric tonnes of the petroleum products delivered by SCF YENISEI has been discharged into the receptacles of the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company (BOST).

The fuel product valued at $40 million will be sold by BOST to bulk distributing companies (BDCs) across the country. Sources also say BOST would sell the product to the BDCs, proceeds paid to an escrow account at the Bank of Ghana for the procurement of gold for the process.

The policy Gold for Oil Policy has been instituted to stem the increasing depreciation of the cedi against world major currencies, particularly the dollar.

In November 2022, the government announced plans to buy oil products with gold rather than US dollars.

Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, said that the move was meant to tackle dwindling foreign currency reserves coupled with demand for dollars by oil importers, which was weakening the local cedi and increasing living costs.

He added that using gold would prevent the exchange rate from directly impacting fuel or utility prices as domestic sellers would no longer need foreign exchange to import oil products.