The Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors (CBOD) has expressed deep concern over recurring disruptions to Ghana’s Laycan fuel import schedule, warning that inefficiencies in the system cost Bulk Import, Distribution, and Export Companies (BIDECs) more than $40 million in demurrage and related charges between January and June 2025.
CBOD in a statement contends that frequent and uncoordinated revisions to the Laycan import programme have disrupted cargo scheduling and weakened operational predictability across Ghana’s petroleum downstream sector.
The schedule intended to streamline the timing and flow of petroleum shipments into the country has been revised at least 11 times in the first half of 2025, with no prior industry consultation, affecting as many as ten cargoes per change and resulting in cumulative delays of up to 30 days per incident.
These disruptions have led to significant cost implications, which the Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors says have filtered directly into retail fuel prices.
The Laycan schedule, developed through multi-stakeholder consultations and published by the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), provides a framework for the efficient and orderly importation of petroleum products.
However, in 2025 alone, the schedule was revised more than four (4) times in the first quarter (Q1) and amended seven (7) times in the second quarter (Q2), arbitrarily and without consultation with the industry.
“These frequent and unilateral changes have severely undermined operational predictability and imposed significant financial burdens on Bulk Import, Distribution, and Export Companies (BIDECs). It is important to note that each revision affects up to ten cargoes, causing cumulative delays of approximately thirty days per incident.
Between January and June 2025, BIDECs incurred over forty million United States dollars (USD 40 mn) in demurrage and other associated costs. These unnecessary costs were unfortunately filtered into fuel prices at the pump, further burdening Ghanaian consumers,” part of the statement read.
Concerns have also mounted over growing non-compliance with the Laycan protocol. The Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors points to a rise in berth authorisations for BIDECs lacking officially assigned slots, many of which cite emergency needs without sufficient transparency.
In a notable incident on June 23, CBOD said the National Petroleum Authority allowed the MT Marlin Ametrine to berth in violation of the published schedule and a prior presidential directive aimed at restoring discipline in the system.
CBOD claims the ongoing breach of protocol, including the unprecedented extension of the Q2 Laycan schedule into Q3, risks undermining the credibility of the entire import management framework. The group also alleges that certain foreign traders, displaced by Nigeria’s Dangote Refinery, are gaining access through politically linked intermediaries, eroding trust and fairness in the market.
In a formal petition to the Presidency dated 12th June 2025, CBOD highlighted the damaging impact of these disruptions on price stability and operational efficiency. The President subsequently instructed the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition to act immediately. However, on 23rd June 2025, the NPA authorised the berthing and discharge of the vessel MT Marlin Ametrine, directly contravening the official Laycan schedule and the President’s directive.
“This action is a serious affront to regulatory integrity and undermines the progress made in the industry in recent years. Allowing this vessel to berth outside the agreed schedule sets a dangerous precedent and risks delegitimising the entire scheduling framework on which the nation’s fuel security depends.
“CBOD investigations suggest this operation is being facilitated by a group of Nigerian traders, recently displaced by the Dangote Oil Refinery, who are allegedly operating through politically connected intermediaries in Ghana.
This represents a flagrant attempt to circumvent established protocols for narrow selfish interests, to the detriment of national energy security and market stability,” the statement added.
Despite repeated engagements with regulators, CBOD reports no meaningful policy response to halt the trend.
The Chamber is now pressing for stricter enforcement, institutional accountability, and a more transparent mechanism for handling emergency supply approvals, as it warns of broader implications for energy security and market stability.
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