Trade Minister Celebrates First Local Processing of Jubilee Crude
The Minister for Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, has described the arrival of locally produced Jubilee crude oil at the Sentuo Oil Refinery in Tema for domestic processing as a major milestone in Ghana’s industrial transformation agenda.
According to the Minister, the development marks a significant shift from the long-standing practice of exporting crude oil and importing refined petroleum products at higher costs.
Speaking on the historic event, Ofosu-Adjare said the processing of Ghana’s crude oil on home soil represents a new chapter in the country’s economic development strategy.
“For the first time in Ghana’s history as an oil-producing nation, a cargo of Jubilee crude, lifted from beneath our own waters, has arrived not in Rotterdam, Guangdong or the Gulf of Mexico, but here on Ghanaian soil, at a world-class refinery in Tema, to be transformed into fuel that will power Ghanaian homes, businesses and roads,” she stated.
She added that the initiative aligns with President John Dramani Mahama’s vision of transforming Ghana from a producer of raw materials into a nation that adds value to its natural resources.
“Today, that cycle begins to change as we build the Ghana envisioned under President Mahama’s reset agenda, a Ghana that not only extracts its wealth but transforms it,” the Minister noted.
The Sentuo Oil Refinery, backed by an estimated US$2 billion investment, is expected to strengthen Ghana’s petroleum value chain by refining locally produced crude into finished products for domestic consumption.
The Minister said the project’s benefits extend beyond fuel production, highlighting its potential to create jobs, build technical expertise and support industrial growth.
“The benefits of this refinery extend far beyond petroleum products; behind every barrel refined are jobs, opportunities, technical skills and improved livelihoods for Ghanaian workers, engineers and families,” she emphasized.
Industry observers believe local refining will help reduce Ghana’s dependence on imported petroleum products, ease pressure on foreign exchange reserves and support efforts to stabilize the cedi.
The refinery is also expected to produce industrial by-products such as asphalt, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and chemical feedstocks, creating opportunities for expansion within the petrochemical and manufacturing sectors while contributing to Ghana’s broader industrialization agenda.
