Petroleum Overview
With the enactment of the Petroleum Products Act in December 2016, Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) was given the mandate to regulate the sector. Section 5 (4) (g) mandates PURA to, “receive, evaluate and process all applications for the granting, renewal, assignment, suspension or revocation of licenses in accordance with this Act and Regulations made under it as well as other applicable laws”.
PURA regulates the entire downstream petroleum sector and currently there is a 55,000 MT depot at Mandinari in Kombi North.
In addition there are about 130 fuel station in the country and this sector continues to show strong investment .
The Authority will continue to regulate this sector to encourage access and ensure safety in the public interest.
This sector continues to show the strongest growth in terms of investment. More than 5 new stations have come online in both the GBA and the provinces. It is particularly encouraging that in the provinces there has been major upgrades and new retail stations. This has the added benefits of increasing investment, competition as well as access. New players such as NP and SeneGambia Petroleum have built or are constructing new stations in the GBA and provinces.
1. Petrogas in Farrafenni & Kaur
2. Jah Oil – Bakoteh
3. Castle – Jabang
4. Atlas Energy – Brusubi
5. NP – Farato / Brusibi
Monitoring Activities
PURA maintained a rigorous enforcement schedule especially in the petroleum sector. On the 18th January 2019, following a press release by the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy requiring all owners of Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) Distributors and Retail Stations of Petroleum Products to regularize their status and obtain the required licenses as per the Petroleum Products Act 2016 and Petroleum (Service Station) Regulations 2018 by 31st January 2019, a massive enforcement exercise was conducted across the country.
The major challenge for PURA was un-authorized construction activities. A joint taskforce was established with other government agencies with PURA as its key stakeholder namely the Police, the NEA, Physical Planning and Fire and Rescue Service as well as MOPE have carried out joint enforcement actions against service stations that do not obtain or apply for retail Licence. A second enforcement activity was carried out on illegal construction of fuel stations as well as operating stations without a Licence, following the monitoring exercise later in the year.
The following stations were closed due to failure to obtain construction permits.
1. Jah oil – Manjai
2. Techworld – Manjai & Old Yundum, Fula Bantang / Sare Jatta / Bakoteh
3. Afrioil – Sanyang
4. Equa Energy – Jeshwang
5. Castle Oil – Jabang
6. NP (G) Ltd – Brusibi
