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The Chamber of Oil Marketing Companies (COMAC) has challenged claims that the previous government’s Gold-for-Oil (G4O) policy significantly reduced fuel prices in Ghana. COMAC asserts that global market dynamics, rather than the G4O initiative, were the primary drivers of the observed price declines.
Introduced in December 2022, the G4O policy aimed to stabilize fuel prices by purchasing petroleum products with gold. However, COMAC points out that the policy initially accounted for only 10% of the country’s monthly fuel consumption, peaking at 30%. They note that ex-pump prices in Ghana had already begun decreasing before the first G4O shipment arrived.
Between November 2022 and June 2023, global crude oil prices fell from $96.04 per barrel to $74.27. Similarly, petrol and diesel prices declined from $968.25 and $1,096.98 per metric ton to $828.70 and $691.41, respectively. In Ghana, petrol and diesel prices dropped from GHS 16.57 and GHS 23 per liter in November 2022 to GHS 11.90 and GHS 11.96 per liter by June 2023.
Given these trends, COMAC argues that the G4O policy had only a marginal effect on price stabilization, with global supply and demand shifts being the primary factors behind the reductions. The Chamber also refutes claims that the policy played a significant role in Ghana’s inflation rate dropping from 54% in 2022 to 23.5% in 2025, emphasizing that the policy’s limited impact on fuel prices and declining import volumes over time make such assertions misleading.
COMAC’s position highlights the need for a comprehensive evaluation of the G4O policy’s effectiveness and calls for a focus on broader market dynamics when assessing factors influencing fuel prices and inflation in Ghana.
source : citifmonline
