The Africa Sustainable Energy Centre (ASEC) has called for urgent reforms in Ghana’s petroleum downstream sector following Star Oil Limited’s indefinite withdrawal from the Chamber of Oil Marketing Companies (COMAC).
Star Oil announced its decision on Wednesday, January 21, 2026, citing unfair representation and COMAC’s failure to promote consumer-oriented policies. ASEC says the development exposes growing tensions between efficient market leaders and regulatory policies enforced by COMAC and the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), particularly the price floor mechanism.
ASEC noted that Star Oil’s position as Ghana’s largest oil marketing company, controlling 14 percent of the market, operating over 250 stations, and contributing GHS 2.63 billion in taxes and levies, highlights deep-rooted structural challenges within the sector. The think tank described the situation as a critical moment for advancing a fair and consumer-focused energy transition.
According to ASEC, the price floor policy, originally introduced to prevent predatory pricing, has evolved into a constraint on competition, disadvantaging efficient, high-volume operators while shielding less efficient business models. It argued that Star Oil’s push to abolish the floor aligns with market liberalisation principles and would allow savings from favourable foreign exchange movements and global price declines to reach consumers.
ASEC also warned that Star Oil’s exit could weaken COMAC’s financial capacity and advocacy strength, erode industry consensus, and reinforce public perceptions of the association as prioritising margins over consumer welfare. The Centre questioned continued defence of the price floor by regulators, noting that the removal of similar controls in the bulk distribution segment did not destabilise the market.
To resolve the standoff, ASEC is recommending governance reforms within COMAC, a phased withdrawal of the price floor in favour of competition monitoring, and the adoption of technology-driven pricing models to improve efficiency and transparency.