Ghana’s petroleum savings continued to grow during the first half of 2026, with strong crude oil sales, corporate tax payments from upstream petroleum companies and investment income pushing the combined value of the country’s petroleum funds to US$1.64 billion by the end of June.
According to the Bank of Ghana’s semi-annual report on the Ghana Petroleum Funds, the funds recorded a 5.93% increase from the opening balance of US$1.55 billion at the start of the year, despite a US$132.94 million withdrawal from the Ghana Stabilisation Fund.
The report, published under Section 28 of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act, showed that Ghana earned US$561.69 million in petroleum-related revenue between January and June 2026. The revenue came from crude oil liftings, corporate income taxes, surface rentals and investment income.
Crude oil sales remained the largest source of revenue, contributing US$355.50 million, or 63.29% of total receipts. The earnings were generated from five cargo liftings—three from the Jubilee Field and one each from the Sankofa-Gye Nyame and Tweneboa-Enyenra-Ntomme (TEN) fields.
The 87th Jubilee lifting was the biggest single contributor, generating US$110.49 million, while the 85th and 86th Jubilee liftings brought in US$58.63 million and US$66.99 million respectively. The Sankofa-Gye Nyame field generated US$58.60 million, with the TEN field adding US$60.79 million.
Corporate income taxes from upstream petroleum companies contributed another US$203.98 million, representing 36.31% of total petroleum receipts during the period.
ENI Ghana Exploration and Production emerged as the largest taxpayer, paying a combined US$100.49 million covering the fourth quarter of 2025 and the first quarter of 2026. Vitol Upstream Ghana followed with tax payments totalling US$71.92 million, while Kosmos Energy-related entities and PetroSA Ghana also made significant contributions.
Surface rental payments from petroleum operators added US$556,159.23 to government revenue. Pecan Energies Ghana recorded the highest payment of US$201,000, followed by ENI Ghana’s Block 4 Joint Venture with US$92,980, Base Energy Ghana with US$75,400, and Springfield Exploration and Production with US$67,300.
Investment income from the petroleum funds reached US$1.66 million, although the Bank of Ghana noted that US$284,530.60 earned during the period would be allocated in the second half of the year.
Out of the crude oil proceeds, US$197.13 million was transferred into the Ghana Petroleum Funds. In line with the Petroleum Revenue Management Act, 70% of the allocation, equivalent to US$137.99 million, was paid into the Ghana Stabilisation Fund, while 30%, amounting to US$59.14 million, went into the Ghana Heritage Fund.
The 87th Jubilee lifting accounted for the largest allocation, with US$70.84 million transferred to the Stabilisation Fund and US$30.36 million to the Heritage Fund.
The Ghana Heritage Fund, which preserves part of the country’s oil wealth for future generations, ended June with US$1.46 billion, up 6.12% from the beginning of the year after recording US$25.14 million in net investment income. No withdrawals were made from the fund during the period.
The Ghana Stabilisation Fund closed the first half at US$182.68 million. Although it generated US$2.65 million in investment income, it also recorded withdrawals of US$132.94 million. Fresh allocations, however, helped lift its closing balance by 4.40% from the opening value of US$174.98 million.
Overall, the Heritage Fund now accounts for nearly 89% of Ghana’s total petroleum savings, underscoring its growing role in safeguarding oil revenues for future generations.
