Concerns have been expressed by the Africa Center for Energy Policy (ACEP) over negotiations for a lease between Torentco and the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR).
According to ACEP, Torentco, a recently founded local Ghanaian company founded in January 2023, lacks experience in the petroleum industry and is unable to successfully take over TOR.
"This is a brand-new local Ghanaian business that was founded in Ghana in January 2023 and has no prior experience. How do you hold them responsible if they don't produce as promised? According to Mr. Boakye in an interview with Citi Eyewitness News, they don't have any prior experience dealing with the petroleum industry.
In addition, Mr. Boakye underlined the significance of a transparent and competitive bidding process as opposed to only relying on the presumption that TOR is not lucrative in order to ensure that the best choice is selected.
"I have observed numerous firms interested in acquiring the asset [TOR] over the course of the past year alone. Open it out, be honest about it, and ask everyone who is interested in it if they want $1 million or not, who wants it, and what they will give it to me in exchange. Following that, you can compare bids and select the best one. The general public will be curious about your methods and will either support or criticize them.
"I think it raises a lot of questions about whether the basic minimum being promised can be met if you just pick someone because you think TOR isn't making money and just hand the company out in the way that they are doing. We are unable to connect them to any credible business that would allow us to confidently claim that they are the perpetrators and that you can contact or publicly humiliate them for whatever reason.
The Senior Staff Union of TOR, in response, claimed that Torentco is the only realistic choice for reviving the refinery because previous administrations have been reluctant to provide financial support for its operations.
The Tema Oil Refinery will be leased by Torentco Asset Management Group for a six-year period at a cost of $22 million. Up to 8 million barrels per year of refinement are anticipated from the corporation.
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