Ben Boakye, Executive Director of the Africa Center for Energy Policy (ACEP), disclosed that despite his organization’s warnings, the government proceeded with the unitisation involving ENI Ghana, Vitol, and Springfield.
In a letter dated July 2021, ACEP advised President Akufo-Addo against moving forward with unitisation without seeking independent advice. However, the government disregarded this advice, leading to a costly legal dispute.
During an interview on The Point of View on Channel One TV, Boakye noted that his letter to the President was ignored, and his concerns regarding the unitisation of the oil fields were not taken into account.
He expressed disappointment that his advisory was dismissed, resulting in Ghana becoming embroiled in a costly legal battle.
Boakye also highlighted how some industry experts criticized the government’s directives on unitisation, describing them as “laughable” and suggesting a lack of understanding of the sector’s complexities.
“We didn’t receive any response from the President…When we saw and heard the action from the ministry, the AG and the rest of it, we thought that there was a need for some interventions above those organs or agencies.
“We had to write to the President, and we wrote to the President at least asking him to take a second look at the opinion of the Ministry of Energy and perhaps seek third-party advice if necessary.
“From where we sat and the technical people that we have spoken to including many Ghanaian engineers who have worked with EXIM Mobil, they worked with BP, and all of them thought this was laughable and an embarrassing situation for Ghana to go through.
“So, we thought that we could draw the attention of the President to it so that we don’t get into a situation that we’re in now and avert a possible suit by the government.
“In between the periods also, we had seen the claimants making overtures to the state on the assumption that the people handling the matter didn’t understand the technical details of what they were dealing with. They had made overtures to the President and everybody, and they were still not making headways.
“So, we thought that we could write to the President at least also highlight that, even if you don’t believe what we’re saying, and what everybody else is saying but your ministers and your agencies, just take a second look.
“Look for third-party advice and be able to address this matter in a way that sustains the oil industry, the way we had projected it and wanted it to go. And we also pointed out the risks involved… We thought we could write to him and get some response that would protect the interest of the state, it was just a good-faith communication to the President. We never got a response for it.”
The International Arbitration Tribunal in the Eni & Vitol versus Ghana and Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) arbitration has issued its final award, resulting in a positive outcome for Ghana.
The Tribunal denied Eni and Vitol their claim for monetary damages, which originally amounted to $7 billion but were reduced to $915 million plus interest by the end of the proceedings.
The Tribunal completely dismissed all claims against GNPC. Additionally, it rejected the Claimants’ request to declare that Ghana breached the Petroleum Agreement by “refusing to withdraw or prevent reliance by third parties on the Unitisation Directives.”
