Ghana has begun processing its own Jubilee crude oil domestically for the first time, as one million barrels arrived at the Sentuo Oil Refinery in Tema.The delivery, which two cabinet ministers attended a ceremony to mark, ends a long pattern in which Ghana exported raw crude while buying back refined petroleum products from abroad. Trade Minister Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare called it a historic shift.
“Today, that cycle begins to change,” she said.
The Jubilee Field — Ghana’s flagship offshore asset, discovered in 2007 and in production since 2010 — previously sent its crude overseas for refining. Sentuo, a subsidiary of Chinese conglomerate Sentuo Group and built under China’s Belt and Road development strategy, sits in the Heavy Industrial Area of Tema about 30 kilometres east of Accra. The refinery runs at 40,000 barrels per day under its current first phase. When the government commissioned Sentuo in January 2024, it acknowledged that Ghana imported roughly 97 percent of its petroleum products despite being an oil-producing country for over a decade.
Energy Minister John Abdulai Jinapor said the government worked directly with the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Jubilee partners, regulators, and the refinery to structure the commercial arrangements required for the cargo. He said recent global geopolitical pressures gave the initiative additional urgency, sharpening the case for domestic energy security.
The Jubilee cargo is expected to yield diesel, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and asphalt for the transport, household, and construction sectors. Trade Minister Ofosu-Adjare said Sentuo Group had invested nearly $2 billion in the project. Phase 2 construction is now being planned. The government cited a total capacity target of 100,000 barrels per day after Phase 2; multiple published industry sources put the figure at 120,000 barrels per day. NewsGhana has sought clarification from the Ministry of Energy on the correct figure.
The Chamber of Petroleum Consumers confirmed separately that the Tema Oil Refinery is expected to receive a similar cargo of Jubilee crude by the first week of July, extending domestic processing to the state-owned facility. The government said it is also working to revive refining activity at Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), with the broader goal of making Ghana a net exporter of refined petroleum products.
Ghana produced an estimated 206,000 barrels of crude per day in 2024 and holds proven reserves of 660 million barrels. Crude oil earnings have been a central pillar of public finances since commercial production began at Jubilee in 2010.