PIAC Calls for Immediate Action to Halt Decline in Crude Oil Production

The Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC) has raised concerns over a four-year consecutive decline in crude oil production.

The Committee highlighted this troubling trend, stressing the need for immediate intervention.

“Crude oil production has decreased for the fourth year in a row in 2023. Production fell from 71.44 million barrels in 2019 to 48.25 million barrels in 2023, averaging a 9.2 percent annual decline,” the Committee reported in its 2023 Annual Report, released on May 21 in Accra.

To address this issue, PIAC recommended urgent measures to prevent further decline.

“The government and relevant regulatory bodies should take appropriate actions to reverse the production decline in existing oil fields and ensure investment in untapped fields,” the report advised.

Additionally, PIAC noted that the total proceeds from Jubilee Oil Holdings Limited (JOHL) liftings received in 2023, totaling $70,456,718.93, were not deposited into the Petroleum Holding Fund (PHF) for the second consecutive year. This has resulted in cumulative unpaid revenue of $343,108,927.88 into the PHF by JOHL as of the end of 2023.

The Committee reiterated its stance that “proceeds from JOHL and other GNPC subsidiaries’ liftings qualify as petroleum revenues under Section 6(e) of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act, 2011 (Act 815) and Section 2 of the Petroleum Revenue Management (Amendment), 2015 (Act 893), and therefore must be deposited into the PHF.”