Eighty dormant Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) on the books of the National Petroleum Authority, will soon have their operating licenses revoked, NPA’s CEO, Dr. Mustapha Abdul-Hamid has notified.
Dr. Abdul-Hamid, who was addressing the board of Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMCs) as part of his familiarization visit to petroleum downstream players, said: “Many OMCs, currently fall short of the requirements for holding their operational licenses and that remain an affront to the business.”
He said he is resolute in supervising and ensuring that the right thing is done and the legacies he inherited from his predecessor, is protected.
There are 170 OMCs currently operating in the sector and the number, according to Dr. Abdul Hamid could further be reduced when the industry is sanitized. Eighty of such companies according to the NPA, were not working or lifting products or paying taxes as is required of them.
The situation has been leading to revenue loss for a long time, which the NPA itself is worried about. “If I have 100 or even 70 OMCs who are all efficient, and are playing by the rules and are paying their revenues to the government, we will be fine,” Dr Abdul Hamid emphasized.
The CEO also disclosed that after 16 years of operation, the NPA Act, is set to be reviewed to ensure that those who acquire OMC licenses really do have the capacity to operate in the industry.
Apart from the consistent breach of industry regulations, the authority is also confronted with challenges including illegal bunkering, third-party supplies and the non-payment of taxes and levies due government by most of these OMCs.
The CEO of the Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMCs), Kwaku Agyemang-Duah, appealed to the NPA to urgently take steps to check activities of some new entrants who are taking advantage of loopholes in the system to make huge monies.
Kwaku Agyemang-Duah maintained that the failure of the NPA to check such culprits, is a disincentive to OMCs who play by the rules.
