Ghana, set to produce its first oil for export this year, plans to establish an account at the central bank to monitor revenue earned from crude, the Finance Ministry said.
The state will also set up a heritage fund to manage any surplus money as savings, to be governed by investment advisers, according to a document published on the ministry’s Web site.
“The overarching concern for many Ghanaians is that petroleum wealth should be a blessing not a curse,” it said. “Proper and responsible management of the revenues should be the answer.”
Ghana will become an oil exporter this year when the offshore Jubilee oil field starts production. The field has potential resources of 1.8 billion barrels, according to London- based Tullow Oil Plc, its operator.
Both the revenue account at the Bank of Ghana and an account to manage savings will have “clear deposit and withdrawal rules,” the Finance Ministry document said.
The ministry said the document was meant to “inform the public on progress and invite dialogue,” in conjunction with a series of public discussions held during February and March. The document will be updated, the ministry said. Production at Jubilee is “very much on track” to start in the fourth quarter of 2010, Stuart Wheaton, Ghana development manager for Tullow, said yesterday. The company said initial production is expected at 120,000 barrels of crude a day. Exploration is ongoing at other offshore fields.
