Fuel Shortage looms as Gas Tanker Drivers begin Nationwide Strike

The Gas Tanker Drivers Association of Ghana has begun an indefinite nationwide sit-down strike which started from Friday, March 4, 2022.

According to the Association, the strike was prompted by a five-year prohibition on new LPG retail terminals to allow for a thorough examination of all LPG stores across the country.

According to the group, this circumstance has impacted their compensation and other working conditions.

Chairman of the Ghana National Petroleum Tanker Drivers Association, George Nyaunu, told the media that the strike would continue until the government addressed their complaints.

“It is very painful that LPG owners borrow from banks and other places to run a business like that for NPA to put an embargo on it for about five years. So, clearly, it’s not the best. It is not creating jobs for the youth. So we are pleading with authorities. They should just lift the ban on the gas filling stations so that, at least, they will also be in business.” he said.

The strike also occurs at a time when the LPG Marketers Association of Ghana is urging the government to eliminate levies on the product in order to relieve consumer pressure.

It comes on the heels of a recent 6% rise in the product’s price. Following the 2017 atomic gas explosion, the government imposed a restriction on new LPG retail terminals to allow for a thorough examination of all LPG stores across the country.

Despite petitions by LPG marketers to the government and the National Petroleum Authority over the years, nothing has been done to lift the prohibition.

Shortly after the 2017 Atomic Junction Gas disaster, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo directed the implementation of the Cylinder Recirculation Module.

This meant that gas cylinders would no longer be filled at gas stations, but would instead be purchased from distributors who had previously filled them when they ran out.

Apart from employment losses, the Ghana LPG Operators Association has often claimed that sufficient stakeholder discussions were not conducted because they were not involved in the policy development.

The price of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) increased by 5% on March 3rd.

This comes after the Price Stabilisation and Recovery Levy (PSRL) on gasoline goods was reinstated.

The restored PSRL for petrol is 0.16 pesewas per litre, 0.14 pesewas per litre for diesel, and

0.14 pesewas per kilogram for LPG.

Experts have cautioned that the reinstatement of the PSRL, as well as the resulting increase in LPG prices, will further reduce the commodity’s use rate and exacerbate the situation of regular consumers.

LPG is currently priced at $9.76 per kilogram, or nearly $140 for a 14.5 kg cylinder.

Gabriel Kumi, vice president of the LPG Marketers Association, blamed the situation on the cedi’s poor performance.

According to him, “once the cost keeps moving up and you have constant taxes and levies, you expect that the price will continue to go up.”

The price increased from $7.89 to $8.12 in December 2021 during the first pricing window. It increased to $8.22 in the second window of January 2022.

The price increased to $8.60 in the first window of February 2022, and then to $9.29 in the second window.

At the moment, the cost is $9.76. According to the LPG Marketers Association, the quick rise in prices is impacting their company because LPG demand is falling.

“Business is not doing too well because if you look at the statistics, the consumption of LPG is on a serious decline. So if measures are not taken, and the price continues to go up as it is going now, there will be a lot of negative consequences.

“Today, some of our members have started laying off workers, and we are not growing. The consequences are quite dire,” Gabriel Kumi added.

The government has established a goal to increase commodities consumption from 25% to 50% by 2030, making the product more accessible to a wider range of people.

However, given the rate at which commodity prices are soaring, many feel that this goal may be unattainable.

Meanwhile, the National Petroleum Authority has stated that it is in talks with the Finance and Energy Ministries to find a workable solution to the ongoing fuel price hikes.

According to the statement, the meetings would mostly focus on the abolition of some tariffs on petroleum goods.

Kwesi Yankah writes on Ghana’s INDE-WHEN-DENCE

By Nelson Ayivor || Ghananewsonline.com.gh