Let's save TOR

Ghana is not as bad as Somalia, where, for over two decades, there has not been any functional government since the last President, General Siad Barre, fled the country in 1991. The country, like many other African countries, has suffered the trauma of post-independence political upheavals in the form of military coups and declaration of one-party states. However, it would be argued with some appreciable legitimacy that Ghana has done far better than most other countries especially those of the West African sub-region, having survived these upheavals without any serious damage to its internal stability. Thankfully the country has not experienced any external aggression either. Comparatively, Ghana has remained relatively stable, even under military regimes, and its national equilibrium has not seriously been undermined to result in violent confrontations in proportions registered in most of its neighbours. Immediately, one could recollect with sad feelings civil conflicts in Sierra Leone, Liberia and lately Cote d’Ivoire whose wounds in diplomacy and political engagement are still trying to heal. The ripples of the Biafran War of 1967-70, which threatened the unity of Nigeria, arguably the sub-regional superpower, can still be felt as ethnic and religious differences continue to determine the political path of Nigeria. Apart from isolated and sometimes primitive voices of ethnocentrism, Ghana has largely remained intact as one country with a common destiny, thanks to a policy which underpinned the philosophy of the first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, at independence of building a strong, united country through the harmonisation of the human and material resources of a nation which was the first Black nation south of the Sahara to gain political independence. Ghana maintained the pace, when in 1992, the citizens voted to return to multiparty democratic rule by approving the 1992 Constitution with overwhelming vote. The transition was not without hiccups as accusations of vote rigging dominated the 1992 parliamentary and presidential elections which ushered the country onto a democratic path and which has since remained a beacon for others on the continent. Apart from maintaining its sanctity and national cohesion where others have faulted, Ghana is a country well-endowed in natural resources both material and human. For years, it remained the world’s largest producer of cocoa beans. It may not be holding that position now, but it is still a major player in the cocoa production sector. Ghana has abundant mineral resources including Gold, Diamond, Bauxite and Manganese. It has abundant water resources for power generation and for industrial and domestic consumption. Ghana’s resources seem to be limitless. In December, 2010 it joined the league of oil producers. So, with its reputation as a major political force on the continent, its stock of natural resources and the relatively peace and stability it has enjoyed on a continent generally associated with rifts, conflicts and natural disasters such as drought and floods, one would expect Ghana to be far from where it is today. Incidentally, no one can tell where the problem lies, but it is abundantly clear that the cracking pace the country set after independence has slackened significantly and it appears we are finding it difficult to maintain the facilities that gave us a head start soon after independence. Ghana, sad to note, has not been able to capitalise on its relative peace and stability to develop its national resources and institutions to escape poverty and emerge from underdevelopment. Rather, most of the facilities and institutions put in place under the First Republic have either been sold out, abandoned or allowed to deteriorate. One of such facilities which succinctly epitomises that culture of retrogression is the Tema Oil Refinery, or TOR for short. This is a facility which came on line in 1960 as a private company solely owned by ANIC Societa per Azioni and AGIP Societa per Azioni, both of Italy, and was known as the Ghanaian Italian Petroleum Company (GHAIP). In 1977, the company changed ownership when the Government of Ghana became the sole shareholder. This was followed by a change of name from GHAIP to TOR in 1991. On paper, TOR has a capacity to refine 6,138 tonnes of crude daily. In reality, TOR’s performance has not been the best over the years for several reasons. One of them, and quite obvious, was the case of overage equipment and facilities. Almost every government has had an excuse to offer for TOR’s inability to deliver its mandate of refining crude and selling refined petroleum products for the domestic market but the right things have not been done to bring the required improvements. Two, governments will not allow TOR to deliver its core functions with as little interference as possible. So while governments want to have a major stake in the operations of this strategic installation, most of them in the main, have done nothing to solve the problems of obsolete equipment and inadequate funding. When the country went into commercial production of crude in 2010, there were expectations that TOR will undergo a massive rehabilitation to position it properly to play the expected crucial role in the country’s emerging oil and gas industry. It appears TOR’s problems are yet from over. The expectation of Ghanaians that with the commercial production of crude, the end has come for fuel shortages and hopefully high prices of the commodity at the pumping stations, fizzled out when according to technical reports, TOR’s facilities are not conditioned to refine the high-grade crude from the Jubilee Fields christened ‘Sweet Light’. Other technical opinions have since rubbished this claim. TOR, it was said, could only refine our ‘Sweet Light’ crude after undergoing retrofitting which may require an investment in the region of $1 billion. Apart from technical problems, TOR has been having serious liquidity overhangs arising from debt incurred as a result of government subsidy on petroleum products. Thankfully, the government has announced that it has paid all debts TOR owed the Ghana Commercial Bank amounting to GH¢1 billion as far back as December, 2010. If that were the case, why are we being told that TOR could not establish Letters of Credit in respect of crude imports to supply the refinery? TOR is still not healthy enough to play its strategic role in building Ghana’s economy and as a major player in the oil and gas industry. The question is: “What is happening to TOR?” The workers alleged on May Day that the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning had failed to deliver on its promise to recapitalise TOR with $200 million. They also complained of inaction and ineptitude on the part of the board and management. They also alleged that the company was losing a good number of technical experts who were migrating to the Middle East, where their services are in high demand. Whatever the case, TOR should not suffer the fate of other equally strategic institutions, facilities and installations this country possessed in the 1960s when it set itself a target of proving that the African and for that matter the Black person is capable of managing his own affairs. If there is any facility that must not suffer official neglect or strangulation at a time we are making a lot of noise of oil and gas, it is TOR. We cannot become like Nigeria, which produces abundant oil, but has to rely on fuel imports to oil its massive industry and for the domestic consumption of its huge population. Some of us were even expecting that this country should have more than one refinery by now, having started on a good note at independence. If in the past, we thought one was more than enough, there should be a new awakening and rethinking. This country cannot continue to rely on one refinery if there is any vision to transform this country into an African Tiger on the international stage. Whatever obstacles are holding down TOR should be removed as early as possible. Our governments should also begin to look beyond TOR and open the field for more refineries to satisfy not only the domestic market but the sub-region where there is a promise of a bonanza if we play our cards well. We have lost our national shipping line, our national airline and many others. We do not have control over our telecommunications industry. TOR should not go the way of Ghana Airways, the Black Star Shipping Line, Tema Food Complex, Ghana Film Industry Corporation and many others. If we cannot build another oil refinery immediately, let us protect the only one we have now. fokofi@yahoo.co.uk kofiakordor.blogspot.com