Ghana’s total petroleum revenues up by 17.5% – PIAC report

The Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC) has revealed in its Annual Report on the management and use of petroleum revenues for 2021 that the total petroleum revenues increased by 17.5 percent from US$666,390,751.22 in 2020 to US$783,325,849.87 in 2021 due to higher crude oil prices.

This is in spite of the decline in crude oil production in 2021, PIAC said.

PIAC also said Surface Rental Arrears increased by 22.22 per cent from US$2,110,212.23 in 2020 to US$2,579,170.21 in 2021.

“For the first time since Ghana started receiving petroleum revenue in 2011, the DACF received an amount of GH¢32,380,403.91, following the 2019 decision of the Supreme Court in the case of Kpodo vs The Attorney-General. However, the disbursement made was 1.74 percent of the ABFA, instead of the 5 percent specified in the Supreme Court judgement,” it added.

Since its establishment in September 2011, PIAC has exercised its oversight responsibility of monitoring and evaluating the management and use of Ghana’s petroleum revenues by the government and stakeholder institutions.

In compliance with provisions of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act (PRMA), 2011, the Committee prepares statutory Semi-Annual and Annual Reports, which aim at keeping Ghanaians and other interested stakeholders regularly informed about the management and utilisation of the country’s petroleum revenues. Since its establishment in 2011, the Committee has published a total
of 21 Reports – 10 Semi-Annual and 11 Annual.

The 2021 Annual Report is being published a month after the statutory date of 15th March, due to the delay in the receipt of data from some of its stakeholders. PIAC continues to urge its stakeholders to ensure the timely submission of information to enable the Committee meet its statutory timeline.
The Report covers the period January to December and encompasses a broad range of issues associated with petroleum revenue management such as information on production, liftings, total revenues accrued and allocated by Government, ABFA distribution and utilisation, and the management of the Ghana Petroleum Funds (Ghana Stabilisation Fund (GSF) and Ghana Heritage Fund (GHF)).

It also examines other issues related to the performance of various institutions charged with responsibilities in the PRMA. For this Report, PIAC has introduced a Chapter which provides a detailed narrative on PIAC’s activities, project inspections and feedback from citizens during its yearlong activities.

Source: 3news.com|Ghana