The Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC) has called on Ghana’s government to create a framework to increase investment in existing producing fields, particularly the Tweneboa Enyenra Ntomme (TEN) Oil Field, where output has fallen short of initial projections.
The committee said the framework should be developed through the Petroleum Commission alongside improvements to the country’s regulatory and fiscal systems and the acquisition of more data from new basins.
PIAC acknowledged government efforts to attract investment, including recent Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with Shell and Chevron. It repeated its recommendation in a report covering the first half of 2026.
The report also recorded a significant reduction in gas flaring across Ghana’s three producing fields. The reductions were Jubilee: 74.02 percent; TEN: 40.79 percent; and SGN: 79.73 percent, compared with the first half of 2025 figures of Jubilee: 6,155.77 MMSCF; TEN: 2,799.59 MMSCF; and SGN: 4,888.19.
PIAC attributed the progress to better compliance with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-approved flaring limits and commended operators for the improvement.
Crude oil production rose by 11.73 percent year-on-year, from 18,415,410.74 bbls in the first half of 2025 to 20,575,376.56 bbls in the first half of 2026. The increase was mainly driven by higher production from the Jubilee and SGN fields.
Total petroleum receipts also grew by 52 percent, rising from US$370,343,681.17 to US$561,408,307.36 over the same periods. PIAC said the increase was largely the result of higher achieved crude oil prices and a corresponding 37 percent rise in Corporate Income Tax collections.
However, Surface Rental arrears remained at approximately US$2.41 million at the end of the first half of 2026, excluding US$1.73 million owed under terminated Petroleum Agreements, despite Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) recovery efforts.
PIAC said improvements in Volta River Authority (VRA) settlements and regular cash waterfall mechanism (CWM) receipts had strengthened cash-flow predictability. But a 17.53% year-on-year fall in total CWM value, together with limited progress in collections, continued to put pressure on Ghana National Gas Company Limited (GNGLC), potentially affecting payments to GNPC and the long-term reliability of gas infrastructure and supply.
“GNPC received US$85.98 million (39.9 percent of CAPI) during the period but applied only US$23.45 million of the US$40.14 million received as Jubilee Equity Financing to Jubilee production and development costs,” PIAC said.
“The balance of US$16.69 million, together with GNPC’s Level B receipts, financed non-field expenditure, including staff cost and corporate head office construction.”
PIAC recommended that the EPA, working with the Petroleum Commission and the Energy Commission, establish a system to monitor and report gas venting volumes from all producing fields.
It also said the Ministry of Finance should treat higher receipts as volatile, with any amount above Benchmark Revenue transferred promptly to the Ghana Petroleum Funds under Act 815.
The committee urged the GRA to take enforcement action against persistent defaulters, including penalties and interest, and said outstanding arrears should be settled before any renegotiation, renewal or reallocation of a contract area, including the ongoing renegotiation by Swiss African Oil Company Ltd.
GNGLC was asked to improve collection arrangements, while GNPC should use Level A receipts strictly for field production and development costs and account for the US$16.69 million not spent on Jubilee costs. The Ministry of Finance, PIAC added, should link Level A fund releases to verified operator cash calls.
