IES Accuses Govt Hawks Of Hounding Out TOR Boss Over Sweetheart Deal

The Institute of Energy Security (IES) has revealed that the resignation of the immediate past Chief Executive of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), Isaac Osei, was the culmination of a hostile hounding by power regime hawks.

In a statement, the Institute said Isaac Osei was forced to leave his job by powerful persons who want to use TOR to profiteer at the expense of the State and that the whole vulturism revolves round an 11million barrels of crude that TOR has received on contract to refine.

“Investigations by the IES indicates that the MD of TOR was forced to leave his post for refusing to sign-off a Tolling Agreement (TA) at a rate of $1.5 per barrel for the utilization of both the Crude Distillation Unit (CDU) and the Residual Fluid Catalytic Cracker (RFCC); instead of an average rate of $4.5 per barrel for an $11m barrel cargo to be refined.

“Currently, TOR charges Vitol/Woodfields $2.5 per barrel for the utilization of only the CDU, without the use of the RFCC. Should TOR agree to sign for a Tolling Fee of $1.5 per barrel, the entity would be unable to cover the operational cost, let alone start and operate the plant; as TOR needs a minimum revenue of $US6 million on monthly basis to begin to recover, assuming no debt is paid.

“It is this unfair and uneconomical agreement that some persons of interest were exerting pressure on Mr Osei to sign-off, or resign instead. Had he agreed to this, the huge difference in the questionably discounted Tolling Agreement running into millions of dollars would have gone into private pockets as effortless profit,” IES said in a statement.

According to the statement, those with interest in the deal have by the resignation of the TOR Chief Executive, won their first battle and are poised to have a stooge in place of Isaac Osei because the Akufo-Addo Government has already began searching for a replacement who will play ball.

If things go according to plan and a malleable person takes over and hands the sweetheart deal to the regime hawks, it said, TOR will make losses to the tune of US$27.5million.

“The Institute would do Ghana a great disservice if the issues surrounding Mr Osei’s resignation are not publicly and clearly laid bare for the Ghanaian public to understand, and to be prepared to bear a potential loss of $27.5 million to the state, if TOR subsequently agrees to process the 11 million barrels of crude on account of some greedy institution and personalities.

“While the IES is fully aware that the government is taking drastic steps to appoint a “more cooperative” MD to take-over.”

Meanwhile, it said that even though it had in the past clamoured for Isaac Osei to be fired for non-performance, Mr. Osei has won its respect by resigning rather than staying on and allowing himself to be a conduit through which TOR is brought to its knees again.