Finance Ministry fails to honour $50m debt owed GNPC since 2014

Listen to this Article Now Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

The Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) has still not got installment for the $50 million advance progressed to the Ministry of Finance (MoF) in 2014 for the development of the Western Corridor streets, in the Atuabo Gas Processing Plant area.

The cash was relied upon to have been reimbursed in 90 days after dispensing. This was unveiled in the semi-yearly report of the Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC).

The issue have been a worry to PIAC since the cutoff time for reimbursement has passed with no mediation from the Ministry of Finance to settle the obligation.

In PIAC’s commitment with Parliament throughout the most recent two years, Parliament coordinated that the Ministry of Finance and GNPC meet to determine this exceptional issue.

As per GNPC, the Minister for Energy mentioned the Minister for Finance to intercede and aid the settlement of monies owed GNPC by government and other Energy Sector Agencies.

This was contained in a letter to the Ministry of Finance in February 2021.

In any case, as per the Finance Ministry, it is yet to get the said letter as asserted by the Ministry of Energy to educate the fitting activity on the asset.

Preceding this, the Ministry of Finance in 2018 coordinated GNPC to erase the sum from its books, in light of the fact that per the Earmarked Funds Capping and Realignment Act, 2017 (Act 947), the Minister of Finance is engaged to cover all reserved assets at 25% of assessment incomes.

The Ministry additionally demonstrated that the public authority had not held GNPC’s streams this far, with the view to balancing the $50 million advance.

In its reaction to PIAC on the matter, GNPC said it intends to connect with its area Ministry and Select Committee on Mines and Energy to talk about the issue further when parliament reconvenes.

In the interim, the PIAC 2021 Semi Annual report likewise uncovered that the nation’s all out petroleum arrangement as at the hour of setting up the report remains at 18.

In any case, the cycle has started for the end of arrangements of four non-performing project workers specifically: Swiss African Oil Company Limited, UB Resources, Brittania U, and Sahara Energy Fields Ghana Limited.