The delegation with NPA management in a group photo
A seven-member delegation from the Energy Regulatory Board of Zambia has paid a three- day working visit to the NPA to understudy the Authority’s operations in the regulation of the petroleum downstream industry.
The team came to have a better insight into the Unified Price Petroleum Fund (UPPF), fuel marking, and electronic cargo tracking from September 18 – 20, 2024.
Deputy Chief Executive of NPA, Linda Boamah Asante, who stood in the stead of the Chief Executive, Dr. Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, expressed profound appreciation to the Zambian Energy Board for their continuous engagement with the NPA.
She called for more of such learning collaborations, and stressed that the doors of the NPA are always open and ready to assist its neighbors in such corporate learning.
Director of Corporate Affairs, Maria Edith Oquaye, said the collaboration between countries was critical, especially for the NPA, as a regulator of the energy industry, and indicated that Ghana now exports petroleum products to neighbouring countries like Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire and Togo.
The delegation was taken through the NPA’s operations, including visits to some areas in Accra and Tema.
Coordinator of the UPPF, Jacob Amuah, said the UPPF is a crucial mechanism in the petroleum industry aimed at stabilising fuel prices across different regions.
Mr. Amuah stressed that the UPPF is essentially a fund set up by the government or a regulatory body to ensure uniformity in fuel prices across various parts of the country.
Citing the Northern Region as an example, Mr. Amuah noted that, but for the implementation of the UPPF, consumers in the north would have paid more for the petroleum products than those in the south, due to longer distances from the refinery.
The leader of the delegation, Ezra Siamasumo, thanked the NPA for accepting the request to understudy Ghana’s downstream industry and their readiness to replicate the UPPF in Zambia.
He affirmed the commitment of Zambia’s Energy Board to continue its collaboration in the petroleum sector with Ghana.
A Business Desk Report