The Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC) has reported a sharp decline in Ghana’s petroleum oil revenue, revealing that total receipts fell by 56 per cent in the first half of 2025 due to reduced crude oil production and falling global prices.
Richard Kojo Ellimah, Chair of PIAC’s Technical Sub-committee, who presented highlights of the 2025 Semi-Annual Report during a virtual engagement with journalists on Friday, said Ghana earned US$370.3 million in petroleum revenue between January and June 2025, compared to US$840 million during the same period in 2024.
“The drop in receipts is mainly due to lower crude oil production and reduced prices on the international market. In the first half of 2025, Ghana produced 18.4 million barrels compared to 24.8 million barrels in 2024 — a decline of about 25.9 per cent,” he explained.
According to him, the Jubilee Field contributed about 60 per cent (11 million barrels) of total production, followed by the Sankofa-Gye Nyame (SGN) Field with 24 per cent (4.4 million barrels), and the TEN Field contributing 16 per cent (2.9 million barrels).
He noted that the decline in oil output and revenue has implications for government revenue and the sustainability of Ghana’s sector.
Ellimah lamented, “We are not attracting new investments in the upstream petroleum industry. Since 2018, Ghana has not signed any new petroleum agreement. This is worrying and must be addressed as a matter of urgency.”
He called on the government, particularly the Ministry of Energy and its allied agencies, to take decisive steps to reverse the trend and secure new investments in Ghana’s petroleum sector.
Touching on revenue allocation, Mr. Ellimah said of the total US$370.3 million received in the first half of 2025, the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA) received the largest share of US$148.2 million (53%), followed by the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) with US$65.2 million, while the Ghana Stabilization Fund (GSF) and Ghana Heritage Fund (GHF) received US$44.4 million and US$19 million, respectively.
Since the start of oil production in 2011, Ghana has accrued US$11.47 billion in total petroleum revenues. Of this amount, US$4.5 billion has gone into the national budget through the ABFA, while GNPC has received US$3.15 billion, the GSF US$2.6 billion, and the GHF US$1.1 billion.
Mr. Ellimah also raised concerns about the recent amendment to the Petroleum Revenue Management Act (Act 815), which now restricts the use of ABFA exclusively to infrastructure development.
“Although focusing on infrastructure may help reduce the thin spread of projects, it is still a broad category“Government should select fewer projects and fund them from start to finish with clear labelling as ABFA-funded,” he cautioned.
He further observed that the amendment has removed the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF) from receiving ABFA allocations — a move that could hinder critical investments in infrastructure.
“It is worth noting that GIIF’s US$30 million investment in the Kotoka International Airport Terminal 3 project yielded US$5.5 million between 2017 and 2019. Such outcomes justify continued ABFA support,” he stated.
Mr. Ellimah revealed that PIAC’s operations have been significantly affected by funding cuts following the amendment that removed the Committee’s financing from petroleum revenues.
“Our budget for 2025 was cut to GH¢4.6 million, representing just 21 per cent of what we requested. This has limited our ability to perform our statutory mandate effectively — which is why this presentation was held virtually instead of in-person.”
He also drew attention to irregularities in allocations to the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF), describing the diversion of 1.26 per cent of ABFA into the DACF as unconstitutional.
He said,” This practice contradicts Article 252(2) of the 1992 Constitution and the Supreme Court’s interpretation in the Kpodo and Quashigah case. The Ministry of Finance must align its disbursements with constitutional provisions.”
According to the report, the Ghana Stabilisation Fund’s reserves declined by 36.9 per cent from US$194 million in the first half of 2024 to US$122 million in 2025 due to withdrawals, while the Heritage Fund increased by 18 per cent to US$1.3 billion over the same period.
Mr. Ellimah expressed worry that the US$100 million cap on the Stabilisation Fund contravenes the approved formula in Legislative Instrument (L.I.) 2381 and leaves Ghana ill-prepared for potential fiscal shocks.
“A proper application of the formula would have retained about US$584 million in the fund,” he emphasized. “We urge Parliament to ensure compliance with the law to build adequate fiscal buffers.”
PIAC urged the government to address the declining oil production, attract new investments, and ensure transparency in the management and utilisation of petroleum revenues.
The state, it said, must develop a broad-based, long-term national development plan approved by Parliament to ensure continuity and proper utilisation of oil resources for sustainable development.
