An excuse for the poor quality of PIAC Rubbishes data for direct negotiation

Steve Manteaw, Chair of the Public Interest and Responsibility Committee (PIAC), rejected claims by some oil and gas companies that the poor quality of oil block data required them to resort to direct negotiation rather than to competition.

He stated that the allegation could not be a good justification because the principles of direct negotiation differed from those of competitive bids.

Dr. Manteaw commented on the sidelines of the launch of the report of the civil society dashboard on the first oil and gas cycle upstream of Ghana.

After the government launched the first bidding process and the licensing cycle for some oil blocks in the western region, a dozen companies that submitted bids chose direct trading.

This development has been described as a sign of low interest in the country's field of activity, which has been attributed to the low quality of data on different oil blocks and small acreage.

In an interview following the launch of the Citizen Scorecard on the pre-qualification process, Dr. Manteaw rejected the request.

At the same time, public ignorance of the companies that will be allocated blocks by direct negotiation would undermine the quality of the competitive bidding process.

The report is part of civil society initiatives to improve transparency in the extractive sector.

-Business player