The Minister of Energy and Green Transition, Dr John Jinapor, has said that the government has taken steps to address the decline in crude oil production.
He says the government is doing that through renewed partnerships and targeted investments in the upstream petroleum industry.
Dr Jianpor said this on his Facebook page after he accompanied President John Dramani Mahama to his recently held “ResettingGhanaTour” of the Savannah Region.
“In the upstream petroleum industry, we are actively addressing the several years’ decline in production through strategic reforms, renewed partnerships, and targeted investments aimed at restoring growth and long-term sustainability,” he said.
The 2025 annual report issued by the Public Interest and Accountability (PIAC) on the petroleum fund utilisation has pointed out that crude oil production in Ghana declined for the sixth consecutive year in 2025.
Production has dropped from a high of 71.44 million barrels in 2019 to 37.3 million barrels in 2025, PIAC said.
This represents a compounded annual average decline of nine per cent.
According to PIAC, this confirms the widely held view that Ghana’s oil fields have peaked and are on a downward spiral.
PIAC took journalists through the report at a two-day event on Saturday, May 16.
PIAC recommended to the government, through the Petroleum Commission, to develop a framework to improve investment in existing producing fields, particularly the Tweneboa Enyenra Ntomme (TEN) field.
The report indicated that regarding the TEN oil field, production has underperformed initial projections, improve the existing regulatory and fiscal frameworks, and data acquisition in new basins.
The TEN Field, operated by Tullow Ghana Limited, commenced production in 2016 but has experienced persistent decline — from over 40,000 bopd in 2017 to approximately 16,000 bopd in 2025.
No drilling or completion activity took place on the field during the year, the report said.
It added that about 81% of produced gas was reinjected, reflecting complex geological constraints. A central driver of TEN’s compressed economics has been the high fixed costs of leasing the FPSO Prof. John Evans Atta Mills. The JV partners — Tullow (54.84%), GNPC/Explorco (20.95%), Kosmos (20.38%), PetroSA (3.82%) — signed a Sale and Purchase Agreement in February 2026 to acquire the FPSO for US$205 million, intended to eliminate lease costs and extend field life through 2040.
However, it said, the FPSO was built in 1998 and will be nearly 30 years old by the 2027 transfer.
According to PIAC, the Government owes approximately US$50 million in TEN-specific development debt to Tullow, in addition to broader gas payment arrears. GNPC’s carried development costs remain partially unresolved.
“Tullow has noted its 2025 free cash flow was materially impacted. PIAC recommends the Petroleum Commission conduct a comprehensive review of TEN’s cost history and procurement decisions, ensure the FPSO acquisition is subject to independent scrutiny, and require transparent reporting on production optimisation and infill drilling plans,” he said.