Tema Oil Refinery Resumes Operations After Years

By News Ghana 

December 28, 2025

The Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) has restarted crude oil processing after several years of dormancy, the company announced, marking a significant development for Ghana’s petroleum sector.

Operations resumed on Friday, December 19, following completion of a turnaround maintenance programme on the refinery’s crude distillation unit (CDU) that ran from August 1 to October 30, 2025. The company said all petroleum product streams were successfully sent to storage for the first time in years.

The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) conducted regulatory inspections after the maintenance work and granted clearance for operations to resume. The authority confirmed the facility met all mandatory safety and operational requirements before giving approval.

TOR said the maintenance was completed on schedule and aligned with international engineering, safety and operational standards. The refinery will now operate on a phased basis over the coming months to stabilise systems, optimise performance and ensure sustained reliability before its formal recommissioning.

The company has installed a new furnace, designated F-61, which awaits commissioning and integration into the CDU. This upgrade is expected to restore the refinery’s original nameplate capacity of 45,000 barrels per stream day, up from its current operating level of approximately 28,000 barrels per stream day. TOR also said it plans to expand capacity to 60,000 barrels per stream day in the medium term, contingent on installing a new air-cooler.

The government is expected to formally commission and integrate the new furnace at a date yet to be announced.

TOR credited President John Dramani Mahama and Energy and Green Transition Minister John Abdulai Jinapor for their support, along with the refinery’s board, management and workforce who contributed to the restart.

The resumption of operations at TOR comes as Ghana seeks to strengthen its domestic refining capacity and reduce reliance on imported refined petroleum products.