Petrol, LPG prices set to fall as NPA cuts November price floors

Petrol and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) prices could fall at the pumps from November 1, while diesel prices face upward pressure after the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) adjusted its price floors for the first half of November.

The NPA has reduced the petrol price floor from GH¢16.09 to GH¢15.39 per litre, while the minimum benchmark for LPG has dropped from GH¢13.89 to GH¢13.73 per kilogram.

Diesel, however, is moving in the opposite direction, with its price floor increasing from GH¢17.09 to GH¢17.41 per litre for the November 1–15 pricing window.

The adjustments suggest mixed prospects for motorists and households, with petrol and LPG potentially becoming cheaper while diesel prices could rise.

However, the revised price floors do not guarantee corresponding changes at the pumps, as the final prices depend on additional costs and the pricing decisions of individual oil marketing companies (OMCs).

According to the NPA’s pricing framework, the floors exclude premiums charged by International Oil Trading Companies, operating margins of Bulk Import, Distribution and Export Companies, and margins applied by OMCs and LPG Marketing Companies.

These charges are determined by the respective companies under the prescribed Petroleum Products Pricing Formula.

Consumers will therefore have to wait for marketers to announce their prices from November 1 to determine the actual cost of the products.

The latest adjustments come amid fluctuations in international petroleum markets, with movements in crude oil prices and the cedi’s exchange rate influencing the cost of importing fuel into Ghana.

At the previous pricing adjustment on October 16, petrol and diesel prices recorded marginal reductions at the pumps, while LPG prices were projected to increase by about 18.5 per cent per kilogram.

The Chamber of Oil Marketing Companies attributed the reductions in petrol and diesel prices to movements in international refined petroleum product prices and government subsidy measures.

In its report for the period, the Chamber said average crude oil prices had increased by 2.03 per cent to US$126.73 per barrel amid renewed supply concerns.

International refined petroleum product prices, however, moved in different directions, with LPG prices rising by 7.77 per cent, while diesel and petrol prices declined by 6.68 per cent and 3.93 per cent, respectively.

The latest price-floor changes underline the differing pressures facing Ghana’s fuel market, with the direction of prices at the pumps depending on international market trends, exchange-rate movements and the margins applied by individual marketers.