Several oil marketing companies have started raising the prices of petroleum products at the pumps. Shell is now selling a litre of petrol and diesel at GH₵14.84.
Market leader GOIL, however, is offering a litre of petrol for GH₵14.60, up from its previous price of GH₵14.55. Diesel at GOIL is priced at GH₵14.75, an increase from the former price of GH₵14.70.
Notably, GOIL’s prices remain lower compared to Shell’s.
Sources at GOIL have attributed the adjustment to a GH₵0.05 increase in the Unified Petroleum Price Fund (UPPF) margin.
The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has directed industry players to raise this margin starting June 1, 2024.
Some oil marketing companies have stated that prices at the pumps would have remained unchanged if the UPPF margin had not been increased. As a result, more oil marketing firms are expected to follow suit and raise their prices at the pumps.
Analysts have questioned the decision and rationale behind the NPA’s directive to increase the UPPF margin. They argue that the price of crude oil has been decreasing on the world market, which should have resulted in lower prices at the pumps.
Additionally, some observers and civil society organizations have pointed out that consumers should have benefited from a significant drop in prices if the cedi were stable against the dollar.
With the increase in prices, it remains unclear how this adjustment will affect transport fares.
