Premix Fuel Automation Ready

…Set To Be Commissioned On August 29

The Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development (MOFAD), in collaboration with Fuel Automation Ghana Limited, will on Tuesday, August 29, 2023, officially commission the Automation of Premix Fuel Distribution System at Elmina in the Central Region.

The much-awaited project, which will remove all challenges that have bedeviled the current premix distribution system, will be commissioned by the Vice-President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.

The laudable and innovative project was implemented by the Fisheries Ministry, Fuel Automation Ghana, together with its technical partner, Universal Engineering & Consultancy Services Limited, as well as its local and foreign funding partners.

The Anchor gathered that, the full automation of the supply and distribution of premix fuel had been on the table of previous governments, but largely due to financial constraints it was difficult to achieved.

The supply and distribution of premix fuel in the fishing industry was introduced in 1994 with the sole objective of powering outboard engines and helping artisanal fishermen to increase their catch.

This laudable initiative raised the living standards of the fishing communities, as well as increased the supply and demand for fish stock in Ghana.

The decision to subsidize premix fuel eventually made the product affordable and available to the fishing communities.

Under the current government, the full digitalization of the supply and distribution of premix fuel started with a public-private partnership with Fuel Automation Ghana Limited.

Challenges Associated with the Premix Fuel since 1994

Smuggling, diversion, hoarding, shortages and politicization have been the major setbacks for the supply and distribution of premix fuel in the country since 1994.

Statistics from the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) indicates the following Premix Consumption between 2018 and 2022(Consumption in millions):2018        -73, 2019-72, 2020-101, 2021-104, 2022   -39.

Between 2018 and 2022, a total of 392million litres of premix fuel was supplied to 300 landing beaches across the country.

However, despite efforts to supply premix fuel to the fishing communities, available data indicate that the following quantities of premix fuel were diverted in 2017 alone:1. 148, 000 litres in January, 2. 54, 000 litres in February, 3. 297, 000 litres in April, 4. 364, 000 litres in May, 5. 270, 000 litres in June, 6. 459, 000 litres in July, 7. 648, 000 litres in August, 8. 1, 107, 000 litres in October.

The worrying trends of premix fuel diversion, smuggling, hoarding and politicization always lead to shortages of the product in the market. Hence the best solution to address these challenges was to fully.

Source: Anchorghana.com