‘Even as Scrap, TOR Infrastructure Is Worth More Than $22m’ — Charles McCarthy

Charles McCarthy of the Hawk Newspaper has highlighted the scale of assets at the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), arguing that the state-owned facility remains a valuable national asset despite years of operational and financial challenges.

Speaking in a discussion at Kessben Maakye show in Accra, McCarthy insisted, TOR has faced a significant debt burden over the years, with the refinery reportedly carrying substantial legacy liabilities of about $517 million.
He noted that the refinery’s revival has been made possible by the efforts of its workers, management and other stakeholders, stressing that the facility’s infrastructure and land hold considerable value.
“Even if you sell the infrastructure of TOR as scrap, you will get not less than $22 million,” McCarthy said.

He further pointed to TOR’s extensive land holdings, noting that the refinery occupies more than 100 acres, while its tank farm is described as one of the largest in Africa.
McCarthy also highlighted the refinery’s renewed production capacity, noting that TOR is currently targeting or operating toward 45,000 barrels of crude per day.

TOR’s official production information confirms that its revamped Crude Distillation Unit has a capacity of 45,000 barrels per stream day.
He argued that the government’s approach to the refinery’s operations and legacy obligations should be viewed in the context of the enormous financial burden inherited by the facility.

McCarthy further claimed that the government had not provided TOR with direct operational funding but had instead allowed the refinery to utilise revenues generated from its activities, while efforts were being made to address its legacy debt. According to McCarthy, the current Managing Director of TOR, Edmond Kombat has admitted, saying, “if you don’t have a committed President, you cannot operate TOR”.

The comments come as TOR continues efforts to restore sustainable refining operations. The refinery resumed crude processing in December 2025 following major maintenance works, with further upgrades aimed at restoring its 45,000-barrel-per-stream-day capacity.

While commending the strategic initiative made by the current Managing Director of TOR, Mr. Edmond Kombat, to reform the effective operation of the facility, he referenced failures chucked by the previous administration, saying, apart from Mr Isaac Osei who spent almost two years at TOR, the Akufo Addo government was practicing one year – one MD at TOR.
A practice he claimed yielded no gain for the nation and eventually turned the national asset to liability.

By: Maurice Otoo