Kumasi, May 15, GNA - The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) is to embark on collaborative activities with security agencies at the country's borders to check the rampant smuggling of petroleum products to neighbouring countries.

NPA will also work with its counterparts in the neighbouring countries to study their pricing systems to know what goes into the pricing of petroleum products in those countries and design mechanisms that will ensure that Ghana's fuel prices were competitive in the sub-region. Mr Alex Mould, Acting Chief Executive of NPA, said this during an interaction with journalists in Kumasi on Thursday as part of his visit to meet stakeholders in the petroleum sector and also inspect petroleum facilities in the Ashanti Region.

He said over the years Ghana's prices for petroleum products had remained lower as compared to those of neighbouring countries, leading to smuggling of the product from Ghana to those countries. These activities, he said, do not only deprive the nation of its fair share of petroleum revenue but also posed a threat to the availability of the product in the country.

Mr Mould said the local pricing of petroleum products depended mainly on the prevailing world market prices of the product and that abnormal upward price increases on the international market posed a challenge to the country. He said currently, prices on the international market were stable and hoped this would continue to remain for sometime to ensure that local prices also remained stable. Mr Mould attributed the frequent increases on the world market to speculation and activities of OPEC members and said currently, there was not much tension on the international market to warrant any increases.