Ghana Gas Debunks Allegations

Dr Ben Asante, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ghana National Gas Company (GNGC), has described as false allegations made by the Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) Truck Drivers that LPG produced from the Atuabo Gas Processing Plant was substandard and could easily cause explosions.

Speaking at a press conference Monday in Accra, Dr Asante noted that the gas from Atuabo had more pressure than imported LPG, adding that Ghana Gas always satisfied the requirements of the Ghana Standard Authority (GSA) and National Petroleum Authority (NPA).

He emphasized that the propane content of LPG from Ghana Gas met both local and international standards and did not pose any risk as a commodity.

“The GSA and NPA requirement is 9 bar, but we have never crossed 8. We do 7.5 while the LPG produced from crude oil such as the imported ones and the one from the Tema Oil Refinery has a vapour pressure of 5.5 due to its components,” he explained.

Call for enforcement

The CEO recommended that attitudinal change towards the value chain was needed and further entreated regulators to enforce standards without any bias.

“There should be periodic safety audits both at the stations and facilities that deal in LPG,” he said

Dr Asante recommended capacity building for all stakeholders in the supply value chain to enhance safety.

The CEO additionally proposed that regulators should be strict in ensuring that the transportation, offloading and storage conformed to safety protocols.

Stop blame game

Dr. Asante said the blame game as to what or who caused the explosion should cease, and urged stakeholders to work hand-in-hand to put an end to such speculation.

According to him, Ghana Gas has been compliant in adhering to safety measures since it began commercial activities a couple of years ago.

Accusation

The Association recently called for the Driver Vehicle and Licensing Authority (DVLA) and Ghana Gas to be held accountable for failing to ensure the suitability of the gas dispensing tankers.

Public Relations Officer of the LPG Marketers Association, Kwame Owiredu, speaking to Citi Fm Monday, said that the LPG distribution outlets could not be held solely responsible for the explosions, as the two afore-mentioned entities were mandated to ensure the road worthiness of the vehicles that transported and dispensed the gas.

“We must have a broad view approach to LPG distribution. If there was a problem with the tanker, we don’t license tankers; we don’t license the BRVs. We have a licensing regime, the DVLA has to make sure that the BRVs are roadworthy and are worthy of what they are going to be used for. That is why we think the discussion of LPG should not be reduced to retailers and marketers alone,” he said.

Following the recent explosion, government has put in place a number of policies, including the implementation of a gas re-circulation programme which the LPG marketers are not enthused with.