Tanker drivers suspend strike as BOST agrees to fix Kumasi Depot issues
Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company (BOST) Energies Limited and the Ghana National Petroleum Tanker Drivers Union (GNPTDU) have agreed on measures to address concerns raised by tanker drivers at the company’s Kumasi Depot following a three-day sit-down strike.
The agreement was reached during a meeting between BOST and the union’s national executives on Monday (17 August).
The drivers had halted work over what they described as deteriorating conditions at the depot, including the poor state of the truck parking yard, particularly during periods of heavy rainfall.
They also raised concerns about safety at the facility and alleged that BOST had failed to rehabilitate the yard near the Kumasi Depot.
Under the agreement, the GNPTDU’s executives in Kumasi will immediately coordinate and undertake the resurfacing of the AG car park to improve parking conditions for the drivers.
BOST has also dispatched a contractor to Kumasi to fix a hanging loading arm at the depot, with work expected to begin immediately.
The two sides further agreed to engage the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) in September over concerns about the meter-to-meter error margin in the measurement of petroleum products.
They will report on the outcome of that engagement, according to the agreement.
BOST also disclosed that a contract had been awarded for the construction of a new car park in Kumasi, although no timeline was given for completion.
The tanker drivers had additionally complained about persistent shortages recorded when they offloaded petroleum products at the depot.
They attributed the shortages to faults in machinery and equipment used in the offloading process.
The latest agreement is expected to ease some of the infrastructure and operational concerns that led to the drivers’ industrial action and restore normal operations at the depot.
