Tema Oil Refinery to become hub of oil in West Africa

Ghana’s only oil refinery, the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) intends to build another refinery in the country. The new refinery is expected to increase the refinery’s production capacity to 120,000 barrels a day, as well as turn TOR into the hub of oil transactions in West Africa, the Daily Graphic has reported.

TOR currently has a production capacity of 45,000 barrels a day.

According to the newspaper, the Managing Director of TOR, Ato Ampiah said these during an investment forum in Zurich, Switzerland during President Mills’s visit to that country at the end of August 2010.

The new refinery would also offset the shortages of petroleum products in the country.

Mr. Ampiah said the increase in the usage of petroleum products in the country makes it necessary for TOR to increase its production capacity to meet the requirement.

He was reported to have indicated that the company is in the process of consulting some partners to raise the required funds for the project.

He however, expressed concern about the increasing use of LPG by motorists because the subsidized product was primarily for domestic use.

There is currently an acute shortage of LPG in the country, despite the fact that the TOR insists it has supplied sufficient quantities of LPG into the system.

By Emmanuel K. Dogbevi