Burma Camp-Ghana, Aug. 31, – Mr. Kwaku Agyemang-Duah, Chief Executive Officer of the Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMC), has revealed that the petroleum sector is suffocating due to unfavourable economic conditions and prevailing international trade issues, but “we are struggling to survive”.
Mr. Agyemang-Duah, who is also the AOMC Industry Coordinator, noted that the petroleum industry was progressing with so many challenges, including the instability of the cedi which is affecting fuel prices and other products, making the industry very unstable.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 2023 Petroleum Fun Games (PETFUN 2023) organised by the Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMC) at the weekend, he noted that members are struggling to keep the industry vibrant in spite of the challenges.
Mr. Agyemang-Duah continued that they were striving but at a higher price to members, so it is important they took time off to re-energise, distress, and have a healthy body to continue for the rest of the year.
He also cautioned the public to be vigilant while buying fuel at any service station, as some scrupulous Filling Station attendants have developed ways of exploiting customers.
The AOMC Industry Coordinator therefore called on the public not to be victims of some of these unscrupulous activities by the attendants, who have devised means of distracting the buyers during the process of service at the station and serving you less than you have paid for.
He warned the attendants that illegal engagement or conduct violated the ethics and standards of Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) operations; therefore, we must put an end to it as mechanisms have been put in place, including a mystery motorist to help arrest such attendants.
Mr. Agyemang-Duah described the activity as unacceptable behaviour that sought to cheat the customer.
He said every fuel station had a visigauge, a measuring can, which helped to check the accuracy of fuel delivery, adding that every customer who felt cheated could request a check from the visigauge to confirm the quantity of product supplied.
“It is your right to request a visigauge to check the quantity of fuel supplied to you by the station manager anytime you feel cheated; there are checks and balances in the sector,” he said.
He added that “if the station manager would not want to cooperate, one could report the issue to the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), the Association of Marketing Oil Companies, or the head office of the filling station.
The AOMC Industry Coordinator said the customer was an important party in the oil marketing space, and as such, they were to raise an alarm “if they were not satisfied with the service of some attendants”.
On the 2023 PETFUN games, Mr. Agyemang-Duah said they offered industry stakeholders an opportunity to grow their networks, strengthen existing business relationships, lessen stress and burnout, and gain new skills.
Teams who participated in the 2023 PETFUN include GOIL Company PLC, Oil Space Ghana, Trade-Cross, Sawadigo Oil Company, Aegis & Huille Company, Benab Oil Company, National Petroleum Authority, Cirrus Oil Services, Trinity Oil Company, GAB Energy, Vivo Energy Ghana, JO & JU Oil Company, and ZEN Petroleum.
Others are Desert Oil Ghana, GRID Petroleum Ghana, Frontier Oil Ghana, Kabore Oil, Strategic Energies, Engen Ghana, R & P Oil Company, ICON Energy, TEL Energy, Star Oil Company, and Tema Fuel Company.
The rest are Superior Oil Company, JP Trustees, Radiance Petroleum, Petro Sankofa, Fuel Trade, Petronax Energy, Frimps Oil Company, Petrosol Ghana, and IBM Petroleum.
Five camps from Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs), Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketing Companies (LPGMCs), Bulk Import, Distributing, and Export Companies (BIDECs), Tank Farms, and the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) participated in the 2023 PETFUN games.
The various events for PETFUN 2023 include swimming, Sack race, Tug of War, Draft, Table Tennis, Volleyball, Lime and Spoon, Playing Cards, Chewing of Apple, Ludo, and Football.
