Goil PLC has held its annual Thanksgiving service in Accra.
It was attended by board members, staff, dealers, transporters and representatives of some regulatory agencies.
The occasion was also used to bid farewell to the Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director (CEO/ND), Kwame Osei-Prempeh, who is leaving office after serving for five and a half years.
In a testimonial, the Board Chairman of the company, Reginald Daniel Laryea, lauded Mr Osei-Prempeh who presided over the steady growth and expansion of GOIL in spite of industry turbulence in 2020 and 2021 caused by COVID-19.
He said under Mr Osei-Prempeh, GOIL had remained a crucial linchpin in the oil marketing sector and was relied on by many state-owned institutions, agencies and other quasi-government departments.
Highlighting key successes under Mr Osei-Prempeh’s tenure, the chairman said the outgoing Group CEO/MD also oversaw the completion of the multi-million-dollar Bitumen plant, a joint-venture investment with SMB of Cote d’Ivoire, to supply bitumen to contractors in the road sectors.
He said the construction of the plant would further help expand the nation’s road network.
Mr Laryea also mentioned the operation of GOIL Upstream Ltd (GUL), a subsidiary of GOIL PLC, and the signing of a Joint Operating Agreement with Planet One Oil and Gas Limited, a natural resources company, for the operation of the Deepwater Cape Three Points (DWCTP) Block as another success story under his administration.
In a farewell speech, Mr Osei-Prempeh expressed appreciation to President Akufo-Addo for giving him the opportunity to serve the nation through GOIL, saying that his almost five and a half years’ tenure had been a “wonderful experience, better and challenging as well”.
Kwame Osei-Prempeh (4th from right), the outgoing Group CEO of GOIL Plc, and some management members of GOIL at the farewell service
He said when he took over, the company had only one strong subsidiary, GO Energy.
“For the past five years, GOIL has seen expansion in the setting up of GoBitumen and GOIL Upstream aside from the GOIL Cylinder Recirculation Model, which has seen the construction of two LPG filling plants in Tema and Kumasi worth millions of dollars,” Mr Osei-Prempeh said.
He said the company also increased its outlets from 300 in 2019 to 450, with 160 company-owned stations.
Mr Osei-Prempeh added the commissioning of five modern Auto Gas stations initiated by his predecessor, Patrick Akorli.
He acknowledged the cooperation of two former board chairmen he worked with — Kwamena Bartels and Mr Laryea, and also thanked the boards of other subsidiaries, especially GO Energy, chaired by Patrick Akorli, and the management and staff of GOIL for their cooperation, hard work and dedication.
Key church leaders and personalities, including Bishop Yaw Owusu-Ansah, Prophet Christopher Yaw Annor and Prophet Atsu Manasseh, attended the Thanksgiving and Farewell service. Uncle Ato, Daughters of Glorious Jesus and GOILY Voices performed song ministrations alongside an in-house GOIL PLC Choir.
Testimonies and citations were rendered to Mr Osei-Prempeh, including gifts from the company, the GOIL Fellowship, the Association of Shareholders and the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC).