The GOIL Company Limited (GOIL) has with immediate effect withdrawn its membership from the Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMCs).
Its decision followed accusations by the AOMCs that its recent reduction in fuel prices was influenced by the Government of Ghana, a major shareholder in the company.
The AOMC had written to the Minister for Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, asking the government to stay away from the price deregulation as being implemented by Oil Marketing Companies.
In a strongly-worded statement to the AOMCs, GOIL said, “the Association has shown gross disrespect to the company and treated it with contempt and public ridicule and has therefore decided to suspend its membership of the Association immediately.”
The statement signed by the CEO and Managing Director of GOIL Company Limited, Mr Kwame Osei-Prempeh denied that the government directed it to reduce its fuel prices as alleged by the AOMCs.
The statement also noted that “GOIL is a listed company with a constituted Board of Directors and Management and takes decisions based on prudent commercial principles”.
GOIL, it added, is guided by the fact that the company is owned by Ghanaians and that has always influenced our pricing policy.
Following a sit-down strike by some driver unions, the government held a meeting with the transport operators to deal with the impasse.
Immediately after the meeting on Monday, GPRTU spokesperson, Abass Imoro told Joy News that GOIL was to review its fuel prices downwards as an interim measure to cushion the transport operators and the motoring public.
GOIL later reviewed prices at the pump downward by 15 pesewas, indicated that its pricing policy took into consideration the welfare of the ordinary Ghanaians, cushioning them in the difficult post-COVID period.
Aside from this interim measure, Mr Imoro also stated that the government promised to remove some petroleum taxes in the 2022 mid-year budget.
