Petrol Shortage Looms, As Fuel Tanker Drivers Threaten Nationwide Strike

Ghana may have to brace for a potential fuel shortage as fuel hauling tanker drivers across under the Ghana National Petroleum Tanker Drivers Union have been ordered by to halt services today, Monday, October 19, 2020.

 “We are informing all tanker drivers across the country that on Monday, 19th October 2020, no driver should move a truck but report to their various loading gantries at Tema for Union Offices, Takoradi, Buipe, Kumasi respectively,” the letter from the association read.

It is unclear the reason for the planned strike, but insiders say it might not be unrelated to debt owed Bulk Oil Storage and Transport (BOST).

The drivers have been at loggerheads with petroleum regulators over several issued, including a plan to implement an Electronic Cargo Tracking System by the National Petroleum Authority (NPA).

The Electronic Cargo Tracking System and the National Command Centre from the National Petroleum Authority was launched in Accra in January 2020 to improve the efficiency of NPA in the monitoring of Bulk Roads Vehicles nationwide and also check illicit activities associated with the transportation of petroleum products across the country.

But the drivers threatened to strike if the implementation is not suspended.