According to audited accounts submitted to the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) recorded a profit before tax of GH¢1.24 billion for the 2025 financial year. This information was shared in a press statement issued by SIGA on Monday, June 1, 2026, to commend TOR.
Titled “SIGA Commends Tema Oil Refinery for Historic Financial Turnaround and Submission of Six Years of Audited Accounts,” the statement praised the Board, Management, and Staff of TOR for their successful completion and submission of outstanding audited financial statements for the years 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025.
This achievement marks a significant milestone in TOR’s journey towards improved governance, compliance, and accountability, especially considering that audited accounts had not been produced for the period spanning 2019 to 2024. SIGA indicated that the latest submissions had brought the state-owned refinery up to date with its financial reporting obligations for the first time since its 2018 accounts were filed.
According to SIGA, TOR’s return to profitability was supported largely by a foreign exchange gain of GH¢1.3 billion and an increase in profit from associated companies to GH¢155 million. The statement said trade and other payables declined from GH¢7.1 billion in 2024 to GH¢5 billion in 2025, while receivable days reduced from 1,099 to 652 during the same period.
SIGA also reported a reduction in the refinery’s total debt between 2024 and 2025, although it did not disclose the exact figures.
Losses
The authority said TOR accumulated losses of about GH¢10 billion between 2017 and 2024 and owed various institutions, including the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and Ghana Water Limited. Outstanding staff benefits also formed part of the refinery’s liabilities. As of mid-2025, TOR’s total debt stood at US$517 million, while its liabilities exceeded its assets by about US$435 million.
Operations
TOR resumed crude oil refining on December 19, 2025, after completing maintenance works on its Crude Distillation Unit. The maintenance exercise was carried out between August 1 and October 30, 2025. SIGA said the refinery was processing about 28,000 barrels per stream day when operations resumed and refined approximately 600,000 barrels of crude oil during the year.
TOR, Ghana’s only oil refinery, is located in Tema and has been wholly owned by the Government since April 1977.
Fuel imports
Appearing before Parliament’s Energy Committee in June 2025, the Managing Director of TOR, Dr Edmond Kombat, said Ghana spends about US$400 million every month on fuel imports.
He said a fully operational refinery would help cut the country’s fuel import bill to less than 60 per cent of the current amount.
SIGA urged the refinery’s board and management to sustain the recovery, improve operational performance, strengthen corporate governance and work towards long-term profitability while supporting the country’s energy needs.
Source: Mohammed Ali
