The Ghana Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors (CBOD), has called on other players in the foreign exchange supply market to step up their efforts to ensure the demand for US Dollars by Bulk Distributing Companies (BDCs) is met.
This, according to the CEO of the Chamber, Senyo Hosi, is important as the quantum of US dollars supplied by the Bank of Ghana has dropped drastically.
The Bulk Distributing Companies are licensed to import crude oil and finished products, store and distribute to oil marketing companies, among other functions.
For a long time, the BDCs were struggling to get access to enough foreign exchange at affordable rates to procure their products, a situation that led to some level of uneasiness within the industry.
In an attempt to resolve the issue of a lack of US dollars for the BDCs, whose work influences the final price of fuel at the pumps, the Bank of Ghana earlier this year, introduced a foreign exchange forward auction program for the BDCs.
Despite the success of the intervention, the quantum of dollars supplied by the Central Bank, according to the CEO of the Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors, Senyo Hosi, has been dropping alarmingly over the past few months.
“The BoG has actually reduced the quantum of its intervention in real terms and also in ratio terms relative to requirements. When we started, [during] the first window, we got $114 million and another $100 million, bringing the amount we got from the BoG in April to $214 million. Then in the next month, the amount that was made available was $125 million and then in June we are seeing $100 million.”
“Cumulatively, their intervention has been 40% of the requirements that have been submitted over the period. On a month-on-month basis however we have seen a very significant drop from 85% in April to 50% in May, and now we are seeing 21% in June,” he added.
Mr. Hosi thus highlighted the need for other players in the open market to support the efforts of the Bank of Ghana in the supply of foreign exchange for players that need it in the local petrol sector.