Government to enforce new regulations on fuel and gas chain

A Ministerial Coordinating Committee has been set up by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to ensure strict adherence and implementation of new regulatory measures intended to sanitise the fuel and gas distribution chain for maximum public safety and comfort.

The committee, chaired by the Minister of Energy, Mr Boakye Agyarko, comprises the Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, the Minister of Local Government and Rural Development; the Minister for Employment and Labour Relations, and two deputy Ministers of Energy.

The Ministerial Coordinating Committee is to be supported by a technical implementation committee, under the chairmanship of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Mr Hassan Tampuli.

The other members of the committee are the Chief Fire Officer of the National Fire Service, the CEO of Standards Authority, the CEO of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Director of the Land Use and Spatial Development Authority, and the Director of the Department of the Factories Inspectorate.

At a meeting of the Ministerial Coordinating Committee in Accra yesterday, President Nana Akufo-Addo said the government had resolved to fully enforce the new regulatory measures for the operations of the liquefied petroleum gas industry issued after last Thursday’s Cabinet meeting.

The President asked the committee to depart from the era of non-compliance, which had been the status quo in recent years and gave an assurance that his government did not intend to follow the practice in recent years where the political will to enforce measures that would protect the citizenry had been absent.

New regulatory measures

Last Thursday, President Akufo-Addo, on the advice of the Cabinet, directed that henceforth, the cylinder recirculation model of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) distribution should be implemented.

This model means that LPG bottling plants will be sited away from congested commercial and population centres and will procure, brand, maintain and fill empty cylinders to be distributed to consumers and households through retail outlets.

Also, low risk stations would be designated in different parts of the country for the supply of gas to vehicles.

Timelines

The President further directed that the whole exercise should be completed within one year.

The directives followed a Cabinet meeting last Thursday that was called to find lasting solutions to the spate of gas explosions that had hit the country in the past three years, claiming lives, injuring several people and destroying properties.

A statement signed by the Minister of Information, Mr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, and issued in Accra, said in the interim, the President had directed that a number of steps should be taken to give comfort to and ensure the safety of the citizenry.

The measures, according to the statement, included the immediate inspection of all gas stations and the vigorous enforcement of existing regulations by the National Petroleum Authority, as well as a review of the current licensing regime to ensure that only those with demonstrable capacity and competence were allowed to engage in the LPG distribution business.

It said the President had also directed the institution to ensure mandatory training and certification of the staff of regulators, oil marketing companies (OMCs) and LPG marketing companies to ensure the safe handling of LPG.

Review of safety protocols

Additionally, the President has asked for a review of the safety protocols along the entire value chain through the combined efforts of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the NPA, Ghana Standards Authority (GSA), National Fire Service (NFS), Town and Country Planning Department of the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation and the Factories Inspectorate Department of the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations.

The statement said the President had also announced the deployment of a task force, within 30 days, to assess the risk that the country’s current LPG infrastructure posed to public health and safety.

“High risk stations will be immediately closed down, in accordance with relevant law and without regard to any political or special interests. Low risk stations will be designated for the supply of gas for vehicles with improved safety standards,” the statement added.

The statement further said President Akufo-Addo had also directed the immediate incorporation of standards and guidelines developed by the GSA on the handling, storage and distribution of LPG and other petroleum products as technical regulations to strengthen the enforcement regime.

The importance of gas and its use in the national economy required the development and enforcement of regulations and practices, as well as the deployment of technology to ensure the safe use of gas and safety of Ghanaians, it said.

“The safety of citizens is the paramount objective of the government, and the President will take all necessary steps to ensure that citizens are safe,” it added.

Recruitment of safety auditors

According to the statement, the NPA was expected to recruit 200 safety auditors to join the staff of the Factories Inspectorate Department of the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations to check regularly on all stations to ensure full compliance with safety standards and practices.

The President further called on the Fire Service and the Ghana Police Service to expedite action on investigations that are ongoing, adding that any operator or regulatory official, against whom any act of criminal negligence was established, would face the full rigours of the law.

The President, the statement said, had directed an immediate cessation, until further notice, of all construction of facilities intended for use as gas or petroleum retail stations.

The Atomic Junction gas explosion

On the evening of October 7, 2017, the nation was shaken by a horrific gas explosion at Atomic Junction in Accra, which led to the loss of seven lives, 132 injuries and the destruction of valuable property.

In the past three years, the country has suffered eight incidents of explosions.

Writer’s email: victor.kwawukume@graphic.com.gh