The Ghana Oil Company Limited (GOIL) has with immediate effect withdrawn its membership from the Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMCs).
GOIL’s decision followed accusations by the AOMCs that its recent reduction in fuel prices was influenced by the Government of Ghana, a major shareholder in the company.
The AOMC has written to the Energy Minister, Dr Matthew Opoku-Prempeh, to ask the government to stay away from the price deregulation as being implemented by Oil Marketing Companies.
In a strongly-worded statement to the AOMCs, GOIL said, “the Association [AOMCs] has shown gross disrespect to the company and treated it with contempt and public ridicule and has therefore decided to suspend its membership of the Association immediately.”
The statement, signed by the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of GOIL Company Ltd., Kwame Osei Prempeh, denied that the government directed it to reduce its fuel prices as alleged by the AOMCs.
The statement also noted that “GOIL is a listed company with a constituted Board of Directors and Management and takes decisions based on prudent commercial principles”, adding that GOIL is guided by the fact that the company is owned by Ghanaians and that has always influenced its pricing policy.