LPG Price build-up under review – Deputy Energy Minister
The government is reviewing the price build-up for Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) as part of the implementation of the Cylinder Recirculation Model (CRM), Mr William Owuraku Aidoo, a Deputy Minister of Energy, has said.
The Deputy Minister said the CRM required some infrastructural establishments and that the review would guarantee a return on investment made towards ensuring the safe distribution of LPG.
He made the remarks at the opening of the 2022 Ghana International Petroleum Conference (GhIPCon) in Accra on Wednesday, September 28, 2022.
“The implementation of the CRM requires the introduction of LPG Bottling Plants, Bulk Cylinder Transportation, Cylinder Warehousing, Cylinder Exchange Points and Cylinder Delivery infrastructure.
“Hence, the Price Build-Up of the LPG is being reviewed to guarantee a return on investment made in LPG infrastructure for the safe distribution of LPG as a clean cooking fuel while rationalising the price of LPG for consumers,” he said.
Currently, a 14kg LPG is trading at an average GH¢160. As of the first quarter of this year, the same quantity of LPG was selling at GH¢136.
Analysts have blamed the continuous rise of local LPG prices on the unsteady international market and the depreciation of the cedi against the dollar.
Some environmentalists have expressed concern that the rising cost of LPG could fuel the use of charcoal among consumers –and that could encourage deforestation and increase carbon emissions.
Mr Aidoo said the CRM, which is under the auspices of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), was expected to increase access to LPG and ensure safe delivery to end users.
He said the Ministry’s new Programme called the LPG for Development (LPG4D) also aimed at consolidating the Government’s ongoing efforts towards increasing LPG penetration to at least 50 per cent of Ghanaians by 2030.
The three-day Conference is being organised by the NPA in collaboration with the Ghana Chamber of Bulk Distributors (CBOD) and under the auspices of the Ministry of Energy.
The Conference will highlight the petroleum downstream industry’s perspective and guidance on issues of government policy and regulatory framework.
It is on the theme: “Energy Transition in the African Petroleum Downstream Context: Prospects, Challenges and the way Forward”
Dr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, Chief Executive, NPA, said the Authority was committed to reducing the emissions from the energy products consumed in Ghana.
He said the Government was determined to make the CRM policy a reality to help increase access to LPG.
“In the entire sub-region, it is only Ghana and Nigeria that still operates LPG filling stations. We ought to move with the time and to achieve LPG penetration of 50 per cent by 2030,” Abdul-Hamid said.
Source: GNA