GOIL, Star Oil report fuel shortages due to ICUMS technical challenges

State-owned GOIL PLC and private operator Star Oil Ghana have reported fuel shortages at several of their filling stations, a situation attributed to technical problems with the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS), which is used to process tax obligations and enable the lifting of petroleum products from depots.

In separate statements, both companies explained that the system had experienced an outage, disrupting the nationwide petroleum supply chain.

GOIL PLC said the disruption, which started on Thursday, had prevented the company from lifting fuel for distribution.

“Consequently, some GOIL stations across the country may temporarily experience low product levels,” the company stated.

The Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of GOIL, Edward Abambire Bawa, expressed regret over the inconvenience and assured customers that the company was working with the relevant authorities to restore normal supply as soon as possible.

Star Oil Ghana also confirmed the shortages, stressing that the situation was not due to fuel hoarding in anticipation of price increases.

According to the company, the issue was compounded by the public holiday on Friday, which delayed scheduled petroleum lifting operations planned for Saturday.

“Unfortunately, the Ghana Revenue Authority/ICUMS system remained down throughout the day, preventing all OMCs from processing the required documentation to load petroleum products,” the company said.

Star Oil added that the technical challenges were still ongoing as of Monday, March 9, 2026, affecting the entire downstream petroleum sector. It noted that its service stations, which often record high sales relative to their storage capacity, tend to feel the impact of such disruptions more quickly.

The company said it is closely monitoring the situation and will begin restocking immediately once the system is restored.