<<Print>>

Government bagged GH¢3.2 billion from taxes imposed on petroleum products for the past four-and-half years.

This amount accrued between January 2011 and June 2015.

Now that subsidies have been scrapped, government will have to clearly state specific projects the monies from such taxes will be used for.

The question on the lips of many is how government has spent the GH¢3.2 billion that accrued in the past four-and-half years.

For instance, while the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) Debt Recovery Levy generated over GH¢1.6 billion within the four-and-half years, the refinery remains closed due to huge indebtedness.

The TOR Debt Recovery Levy was introduced in a bid to clear the massive debt overhang on the refinery.

Currently, taxes on petroleum products constitute over 20% of the price of fuel. 

Data available to The Finder indicates that within the same period, an amount of GH¢880 million also accrued from the Road Fund to the state, yet roads in the country are in deplorable state.

Despite this, a bill has been presented to Parliament which proposes a number of taxes, including recovery margins, on fuel.

The breakdown of the GH¢3.2 billion revenue for the four-and-half years is 2011 -GH¢390,663,167.40; 2012 - GH₵468,627,829.51; 2013 - GH¢514,341,781.52; 2014 - GH₵775,984,110.74; and Jan-June 2015 - GH₵1,053,949,345.67.

For the four-and-half-year period, Road Fund accumulated GH₵880,478,324.35; Excise Duty generated GH₵338,096,690.34; Energy Fund accrued GH₵7,004,420.51; Exploration Levy amounted to GH₵14,688,001.25; Cross Subsidy bagged GH₵134,324,167.04; TOR Debt Recovery Levy generated GH₵1,165,635,051.25; and Special Petroleum Tax (SPT) amounted to GH₵931,983,887.18.

Excise Duty - 2011 to June 2015 (GH₵338,096,690.34)

The breakdown of Excise Duty for the four-and-half-year duration is 2011 - GH¢63,421,143.57; 2012 - GH₵74,654,260.81; 2013 - GH₵79,952,816.23; 2014 - GH₵79,697,549; and GH¢40,370,920.73 for the first six months of 2015.

Road Fund - 2011 to June 2015 (GH₵880,478,324.35)

For Road Fund, GH₵145,610,059.50 accrued for 2011; GH₵174,113,652.78 was generated in 2012; GH¢239,164.22 accumulated in 2013; GH₵244,683,812.14 accrued in 2014; and GH₵127,831,635.72 was generated in the first six months of 

2015.

Energy Fund - 2011 to June 2015 (GH¢7,004,420.51)      

During the four-and-half years, the Energy Fund generated GH¢1,271,683.96 for 2011; GH¢1,496,760.11 for 2012; GH¢1,608,011.40 for 2013; GH¢1,749,091.30 for 2014; and GH¢878,873.75 for the first six months of 2015.

Exploration Levy - 2011 to June 2015 (GH¢14,688,001.25)       

Exploration Levy, added to the price of refined petroleum products to allow government generate some revenue to undertake oil exploration activities in Ghana, generated GH¢2,687,824.33 in 2011; GH¢3,169,409.89 in 2012; GH¢3,385,441.90 in 2013; GH¢3,637,235.65 in 2014; and GH¢1,808,089.42 for the first half of this year.

Aside the Exploration Levy Ghanaians have been mandated to pay, there is a whole budget every year that the government gives to GNPC to do exploration in the country, raising questions about the need for this levy, with some people calling for it to be scrapped.

Cross Subsidy - 2011 to June 2015 (GH¢134,324,167.04)        

Revenues that accrued from Cross Subsidy are GH¢31,263,742.71 in 2011; GH¢34,688,233.33 in 2012; GH¢26,811,222.74 in 2013; GH¢29,077,423.84 in 2014; and GH¢12,483,544.42 in the first six months of 2015.

TOR Debt Recovery Levy - 2011 to June 2015 (GH¢1,165,635,051.25)        TOR Debt Recovery Levy, which was introduced in a bid to clear the massive debt overhang on the refinery as a result of under-recoveries, accrued GH¢208,936,198.75 in 2011; GH¢249,881,979.26 in 2012; GH¢267,965,557.51 in 2013; GH¢291,853,220.95 in 2014; and GH¢146,998,094.78 between January and June this year.

Special Petroleum Tax (SPT) - 2011 to June 2015 (GH¢931,983,887.18)       

Special Petroleum Tax (SPT), which was imposed on selected petroleum products in 2014 generated GH¢183,438,611.54 in its first year and GH¢748,545,275.65 in the first half of this year.