The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has rejected media reports suggesting that the Auditor-General uncovered a GH¢78.6 million scandal at the Authority, insisting that the audit did not establish any financial or revenue loss.
In a statement issued by its Corporate Affairs Directorate on Monday, 20 July 2026, the Authority said media reports characterising the Auditor-General’s findings as evidence of “rot”, corruption or financial misappropriation were inaccurate and did not reflect the contents of the Performance Audit Report covering its operations between 2023 and 2025.
“The Auditor-General’s report does not establish any financial loss or revenue loss to the National Petroleum Authority,” the statement said.
The Authority further criticised a publication by The NewsCenta newspaper, stating that it failed to include management’s responses to the audit findings.
According to the NPA, while it acknowledges the issues identified in the audit, the report does not support allegations of corruption or financial misconduct.
The Authority reaffirmed its commitment to transparency, accountability and sound corporate governance, adding that it would continue to work with the Audit Service to implement recommendations aimed at strengthening regulatory oversight, operational efficiency and consumer protection in Ghana’s downstream petroleum sector.
It also urged the public to rely only on official communications issued by the Authority regarding the matter.
The NPA’s statement follows a report by The NewsCenta, which said the Auditor-General’s Performance Audit Report dated 24 June 2026 uncovered widespread weaknesses in the regulation, monitoring and distribution of petroleum products, exposing the state to potential revenue losses and consumers to the risk of purchasing substandard fuel.
According to the newspaper, the audit centred on the Authority’s failure to effectively implement the national fuel marking programme, weak enforcement of petroleum transport regulations, poor monitoring of fuel distribution and questionable payments made to a fuel-marking contractor.
The audit reportedly found that petroleum products attracting Uniform Petroleum Pricing Fund (UPPF) margins valued at GH¢78.6 million were distributed without first being marked.
The unmarked volumes amounted to 87.3 million litres of petrol, raising concerns about possible tax evasion and the inability to verify the quality of fuel supplied to consumers.
The Auditor-General warned that because the products were distributed without being marked, there was no assurance that fuel sold at filling stations met the required quality standards, thereby exposing motorists to the risk of purchasing adulterated or substandard petroleum products.
The report also questioned payments made to Nationwide Technologies Limited (NTL), the company contracted to provide fuel-marking services.
Auditors found that 638,500 litres of petrol were marked but never distributed, yet the NPA paid the contractor US$2.688 million for fuel-marking services.
The payments comprised US$2.486 million in 2023 and US$202,080 in 2024.
The Auditor-General directed the Authority to refund the entire amount into the Auditor-General’s Recovery Account at the Bank of Ghana by 31 December 2026 and provide evidence of payment for verification.
The audit further revealed that 9.78 million litres of petrol and diesel were diverted during 2024 and 2025 in breach of the National Petroleum Authority (Bulk Road Vehicle Tracking and Volume Monitoring) Regulations, 2016 (L.I. 2251).
Although the regulations prescribe fines, imprisonment or both for fuel diversion, auditors found that the NPA merely rejected freight claims submitted by the offending Oil Marketing Companies instead of applying the statutory penalties.
The Auditor-General concluded that the failure to enforce the law had deprived the state of potential revenue while weakening deterrence against fuel diversion.
The report also identified significant shortcomings in the Authority’s fuel tracking system.
Auditors found that 48,678 deliveries involving Aviation Turbine Kerosene (ATK) and Naphtha were not tracked, despite legal requirements to monitor the distribution of petroleum products under the UPPF scheme.
Although management argued that the products did not attract UPPF margins, auditors rejected that explanation, noting that no official directive had exempted them from the tracking regime.
The report warned that the omission increased the risk of fuel diversion and weakened regulatory oversight, particularly because aviation fuel is critical to flight safety.
Auditors also found that only 2,514 of the country’s 4,904 Bulk Road Vehicles held valid licences as of 9 April 2026, meaning nearly half of the vehicles transporting petroleum products were operating without valid permits.
Management explained that operators had been granted additional time to renew their licences to avoid disrupting fuel supplies.
However, the Auditor-General cautioned that allowing unlicensed vehicles to continue operating undermined assurance that they met the required safety and technical standards.
The audit further highlighted weaknesses within the UPPF Secretariat and the NPA’s Quality Assurance Directorate.
Officials were found to have verified fuel orders before loading but failed to confirm that the quantities loaded into Bulk Road Vehicles matched the quantities eventually delivered.
Auditors also found that the two departments failed to reconcile records of petroleum products marked with those actually distributed.
According to the report, these deficiencies significantly weakened the effectiveness of the Authority’s fuel-marking and monitoring systems, increasing the risk of product diversion, regulatory failures, revenue leakages and the circulation of unverified petroleum products.
Despite the findings, the NPA maintains that the Auditor-General’s report did not establish any financial loss or corruption on the part of the Authority and has pledged to implement the audit recommendations while strengthening governance and regulatory oversight.
