Ghana's state-owned Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) plans to begin a new 100,000 b/d refinery and petrochemical plant initiative this year, according to head of the company Edmond Kombat.
No details were provided on the scope or timeframe of the project. TOR was approached for comment.
TOR's existing 45,000 b/d refinery resumed operations in December after nearly five years offline, at 28,000 b/d. The company is waiting for completion of a new direct-fired crude heater before it can maximise throughput.
This is part of a capacity rehabilitation project, contracted to Italy's Vergaengineering, which TOR said is 95pc complete. It is targeting an increase in crude distillation unit (CDU) capacity to 60,000 b/d in the medium term, and wants to replace a 6,500 b/d catalytic reformer with a 10,000 b/d continuous catalytic reformer. A source in the country said TOR is seeking investors for these plans.
The new refinery and petrochemical plant is "planned for implementation" this year, as is turnaround maintenance at the existing refinery's 14,000 b/d residual fluid catalytic cracker (RFCC). TOR is also seeking to upgrade its quality control laboratory this year, and to commission a 120 tonne/hour boiler to ensure "operational reliability".
TOR joins PHDC in downstream ambition
TOR's stated aim to oversee an eventual 160,000 b/d signals greater state-backed ambition for Ghana's refining industry.
TOR's plan to bring its existing refining back to nameplate capacity in 2026 is seemingly on track, but a timeline for the 15,000 b/d CDU upgrade is ill-defined, as is that for the new project.Privately-owned Petroleum Hub Development Corporation (PHDC) is further behind the curve in realising an ambitious plan for a three-refinery, 900,000 b/d project in the country's southwest. This appears to have been postponed since president John Mahama took power in January 2025, according to sources.
All this leaves Ghana with clear direction in how it wants to mirror Nigeria to become more self-sufficient in oil product supply, and even to have capacity for exports of refined products. But operational capacity remains far beneath ambition.
The 120,000 b/d Sentuo refinery, which began refining activities in November 2023, is operating at a maximum of 40,000 b/d under its first phase. Sentuo was operating all year round in 2024, according to the most recent report from Ghanaian downstream body CBOD.
The modular 5,000 b/d Akwaaba and 3,000 b/d Platon refineries operate inconsistently, according to a downstream source. Crude procurement may continue to be an issue for the modular refineries, as was the case in 2024, according to CBOD.
