The Institute for Energy Security (IES) and the Chamber for Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) are urging the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) to disclose the full extent of sanctions imposed on Sentuo Oil Refinery Limited for allegedly releasing substandard products onto the Ghanaian market.

This request follows the NPA's dismissal of claims by the IES and COPEC that the regulator is lenient in its handling of Sentuo Oil Refinery Limited (SORL).

In a joint statement, the two energy think tanks have also called on the NPA to publicly release both the Commercial Licenses and the Quality Assurance Certificate for the petroleum consignment in question. They argue that this transparency is necessary to address industry and consumer concerns and to dispel any perception that the refinery is attempting to circumvent regulatory procedures.

“To proceed, the IES and COPEC is requesting of the NPA to make public the full stream of sanctions imposed on SORL since it released the unwholesome products onto the Ghanaian market as the said products are believed to be off specification”.

The IES and COPEC reiterated their stance and emphasized their belief that the NPA must enforce all relevant industry regulations equally and impartially among all Ghanaian petroleum service providers (PSPs).

They argue that this approach is crucial to building public trust and maintaining the integrity of the downstream petroleum sector. They also emphasized the importance of protecting the NPA's reputation, which has been established over the years through diligent regulation.

“To buttress the claim of Sentuo products causing damage to vehicles and consumer complaints, as had earlier been asserted, the IES and COPEC refers to the bold statement released by the Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMCs) on February 21, 2024 bringing to the attention of the NPA’s Chief Executive Officer the growing concerns of several of its members in relation to the said quality parameters and viscosity of Sentuo’s petroleum products its members were supplied with”, it explained.

According to a statement by the Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMCs), there have been complaints about the inefficiency of some petroleum service station dispensers or pumps in dispensing Sentuo products, as well as other quality issues leading to a significant number of customer complaints since February 2024.

The two energy think tanks, IES and COPEC, stated that the NPA's recent statement contradicts its initial claims of no wrongdoing and inexplicably concludes that, in addition to the remedial actions taken on Sentuo's out-of-specification products, the NPA is also imposing additional sanctions on Sentuo Oil Refinery Limited (SORL).

“One wonders, if indeed the Sentuo refinery products on the market is not a source of worry why the additional sanctions by the NPA?” it questioned.

They added "The NPA must be made aware of the fact that any such sanctions on the Chinese refinery must factor due and appropriate compensations to both AOMCs and its members affected by the bad fuel and its attendant challenges on their facilities as well as the consumers who patronised these products and are currently grappling with one issue or the other on their engines".

"Anything short of ensuring the payment of these compensations will sure result in a legal suit on the refinery and downstream regulators in the coming days", they concluded.