I’m not fighting with NAPO; we’re having just a little disagreement – Freddie Blay

The Board Chairman of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Freddie Blay, has denied reports of friction between him and the Minister of Energy, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, alias NAPO.

According to him, even though he and NAPO might have different views on some operations of GNPC they have a good relationship, asaaseradio.com reports.

He added that the issue with the operation of the GNPC which has now become a matter of public discussion could have been handled quietly.

“I don’t see it. There may be disagreements on some issues even at the board level we disagree…a little disagreement here and there doesn’t mean that there is friction.”

“I don’t believe that there is friction [between me and the energy minister], unfortunately, it has overflown and it’s gone public. People have gone public on it. People have gone public on correspondence which I thought should have been quickly dealt with,” Blay, a former general secretary of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) is quoted to have said.

Background:

The Minister for Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, alias NAPO, has called out Freddie Blay, over the PetroSA deal, which seeks to offload some of Ghana’s oil interest to the South African National Company (PetroSA).

According to The Chronicle newspaper, NAPO, in a letter to Freddie Blay, which it sighted, accused the former New Patriotic Party (NPP) chairman of pushing for the deal despite a government directive for it to cease.

The energy minister, who is also the member of parliament for Manhyia South, told Blay that it is scandalous for him to be pushing for the deal even though he has been told on several occasions that it will not be approved because it is not in the interest of Ghana.

“Subsequent to the meeting with my counterpart Hon. Gwede Mantasha, Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy in South Africa, on the above subject, I have had cause to formally respond to him in two successive correspondences affirming the government's position on the matter, and you were in copy in all instances.

“It is therefore scandalous that, in spite of these directives, you have led GNPC to offer part of the government-acquired JOHL interest in the DWT to PetroSA. I direct that you cease and desist from any further flouting of the directives forthwith and withdraw the offer made to PetroSA in your letter of 23 April, 2023 immediately,” parts of Napo's letter to Blay is quoted by The Chronicle.

Several Civil Service Organisations have called on Freddie Blay to resign over the matter but he has insisted that he has done no wrong and will only vacate his position when he is fired by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

He said that claims that he was unilaterally trying to sell parts of the interests of the GNPC are absurd because it is impossible for him to do that.

“I cannot on my own go and sell GNPC assets. There was no intention to do so, what happened was that there was a 7% interest in JOHL which the government through GNPC decided to acquire but this 7% forms part of Anardarko’s share.

“We are not selling, it was 7% that we were all struggling to have, and Anadarko insisted they were also interested, and there was disagreement about it, and this started in 2021,” Blay said.

“They said they were going for arbitration… but over seven months it didn’t happen, and I proposed to them that instead of taking it, we could sit down and take 50-50,” he added.

IB/OGB