Sentuo Oil Refinery in Ghana set for test run

The Sentuo Oil Refinery in Tema, Ghana is expected to start its test run in August this year. The new oil refinery was developed with a motive to bring significant economic benefits to Ghana and help address the country’s energy needs while reducing its dependence on imported petroleum products.

The refinery is a US $1.98bn investment with a capacity of five million metric tonnes per year, equivalent to 100,000 barrels per stream a day. The operationalization of the plant will occur in two phases. In phase one, the facility will process up to two million metric tonnes per year, and later in phase two, it will be scaled up to the full capacity of five million metric tonnes per year.

READ:NamWater launches tenders for Oshakati drinking water plant

One district, One factory initiative

The refinery will create direct employment for approximately 900 people. It is also expected to help Ghana reduce its reliance on imported gasoline and diesel supplies, leading to savings on millions of dollars spent on importing finished petroleum products.

The project aligns with the One district, One factory initiative and President Akufo-Addo’s vision for the country’s development. The government is supportive of the project and will consider proposals, such as sourcing at least one million barrels of crude oil from Ghana’s oil fields for the test run.

The Chairman of the Sentuo Group of Companies, Xu Ningquan requested support from the government in terms of tax waivers, other exemptions, and an enabling environment to ensure the successful operation of the plant. To avoid unfair trade practices and protect the domestic petroleum refining industry, the communication consultant of Sentuo Oil Refinery Ltd called for effective steps to be taken, in line with the government’s Made-in-Ghana campaign, through the Ghana International Trade Commission (Safeguards Measures) Regulations 2020.