Ghana’s BOST cuts fuel exports to Burkina Faso and Mali as domestic demand surges

Ghana’s state-owned fuel distributor BOST Energies has cut diesel and gasoline exports to neighbouring Burkina Faso and Mali since August, prioritising growing domestic demand, Managing Director Afetsi Awoonor said.

Burkina Faso requested 80,000 metric tons of fuel for July and August, but BOST delivered only about half — roughly 40,000 tons. Mali received 10,000 tons in the same period, while an additional 40,000 tons it requested for August and September went unmet.

“Supply is available, but it is expensive,” Awoonor said, noting that rising demand has strained supply and made it harder to keep domestic fuel prices stable. Diesel accounts for about two-thirds of BOST’s total supply, and Ghana’s expanding economic activity is driving up consumption.

BOST holds roughly 30% of Ghana’s fuel import and distribution market. Fuel prices in Ghana rose earlier this year amid global supply concerns but have since eased as the cedi strengthened and government interventions took effect.

The export cuts come as global oil and gas supplies remain under pressure, with conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East contributing to tighter supplies and higher fuel prices, particularly across Africa.

Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger are landlocked and rely heavily on fuel imports from West African coastal states, including Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire. Petroleum products must enter through ports before being transported overland into the Sahel, leaving the three countries vulnerable to supply disruptions. All three are under military rule and are fighting Islamist insurgencies.

Mali faces additional risk: about 57% of its fuel imports come through Côte d’Ivoire, and fuel convoys on the main southern supply corridor have repeatedly come under attack. Nigeria’s Dangote refinery increased petroleum product exports to African markets earlier this year, partly because reduced supplies of cheaper fuel from Europe and the Gulf pushed West African buyers to source regionally.

BOST’s Bolgatanga depot, designated as its gateway to Sahelian markets, is undergoing refurbishment. In response to media queries, BOST said the decline in regional exports was “mainly attributable to the ongoing rehabilitation of the Bolgatanga depot,” and stressed that Ghana faces “no imminent fuel shortage.”

The company also announced plans to expand its liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) infrastructure, including an LPG receiving terminal in Tema to be completed by the fourth quarter of 2027 and storage and handling facilities at six locations, including Kumasi.

The decision underscores the balancing act facing Ghana — meeting its own rising energy needs while remaining a key supply gateway for its landlocked neighbours.