IES Calls for Reliable Crude Supply to Sustain TOR Operations

The Institute for Energy Security (IES) says the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) will require a guaranteed and predictable supply of crude oil to operate at full capacity and realise the benefits of its recent turnaround maintenance.

The institute argues that restoring the refinery’s physical infrastructure is only one part of the challenge, stressing that sustained operations will depend on securing adequate crude feedstock.

TOR resumed refining operations in December 2025 after completing a three-month turnaround maintenance programme on its Crude Distillation Unit (CDU).

The refinery is currently operating at about 28,000 barrels per stream day, below its 45,000-barrel nameplate capacity, with plans to eventually expand its capacity towards 100,000 barrels per day.

According to the IES, the difference between TOR’s current output and its potential capacity makes securing a reliable supply of crude particularly critical.

The institute noted in a policy paper that restoring a refinery does not automatically guarantee higher refining output, as the facility must have sufficient crude available to process.

The IES said Ghana’s current practice of relying on negotiated or ad hoc crude allocations does not provide the certainty required for long-term refinery planning and investment.

It cited a reported one-million-barrel allocation of Jubilee crude to TOR, arguing that such arrangements should instead be formalised under a recurring Domestic Market Obligation (DMO) system.

Under Ghana’s petroleum regulations, the DMO framework provides for the annual and monthly determination of domestic crude requirements, notification of petroleum contractors and mechanisms for determining the price of crude supplied to the local market.

The institute said crude allocations to TOR should be based on the refinery’s actual throughput requirements, rather than being treated as symbolic quantities.

It warned that as TOR increases production from its current operating level towards 45,000 barrels per day and eventually 100,000 barrels per day, the domestic crude allocation must be reviewed and adjusted accordingly.

The IES pointed to Nigeria’s experience as an example of the challenges that can arise when refinery capacity expands without a sufficiently reliable domestic crude supply.

According to the institute, the Dangote Refinery has had to source crude from international markets when domestic supplies were inadequate, exposing the facility to additional dollar-denominated crude costs.

For Ghana, the IES believes a predictable domestic crude supply would enable TOR to reduce its reliance on imported feedstock and strengthen the country’s refining capacity.

The institute is therefore recommending that the sector minister issue the 90-day notices required under Regulation 32 and establish domestic crude supply arrangements on a recurring calendar-year basis.

It also wants the annual domestic crude requirement to be published and broken down into monthly allocations, providing crude producers and refineries with greater certainty for operational planning.

The IES maintains that ensuring adequate and predictable crude volumes will be crucial if Ghana is to translate TOR’s restored refining capacity into greater fuel security, reduced dependence on imported petroleum products and improved energy resilience.