The Ghana Upstream Petroleum Chamber has called on the Secretary to the Economic Management Team, Prof. Joe Amoako-Tuffour, in the Vice President’s office at Jubilee House.
The team was led by Mr. Joe Mensah, Senior Vice President & Head of Kosmos Energy Ghana; Chairman of the Council of the Chamber, Mr. David Ampofo, CEO of the Chamber; and Mrs. Kadijah Amoah, Country Director of Aker Energy Ghana Limited and Council Member of the Chamber.
They exchanged ideas with Prof. Amoako-Tuffour on ways of addressing present challenges facing the oil and gas sector. The sector has been hard hit following the near-collapse of crude oil prices, which occurred after outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and its hugely negative impact on global supply chains and businesses – resulting in what has come to be known as ‘the new normal.’
The parties discussed the current fiscal and regulatory environment and explored ways of matching today’s uncertainty with opportunity. Mr Joe Mensah called for a frank conversation with policymakers, saying “the whole fiscal regime needs to be re-evaluated”. Commenting, CEO of the Chamber Mr. David Ampofo said: “Clearly, it cannot be business as usual given the wide-ranging impact of COVID-19.”
Mrs. Kadijah Amoah applauded government’s announcement that it is considering implementing a taxation sliding scale, adding: “It increases government’s take in a high oil price environment and adjusts downward in a low oil price environment.”
Professor Amoako-Tuffour expressed gratitude to members of the Chamber for providing input to the ongoing discussion on how to manage current challenges in the oil and gas industry. He said there is a need to encourage investment in exploration in an uncertain price environment, and ultimately support Ghana’s accelerated growth strategy.
