Ghana’s downstream petroleum sector has entered 2026 with its two largest oil marketing companies (OMCs) both indigenous-owned, fresh data for the first quarter of the year shows, as the Ghana Oil Company (GOIL) reclaims the overall market lead ahead of privately-owned Star Oil.
GOIL moved 256,779,451 litres of petroleum products between January and March 2026, topping the national leaderboard across all product categories. The result represents a notable comeback for the state-owned company, which had ceded ground to Star Oil through much of 2024 and the first half of 2025.
Star Oil, though second overall, has asserted itself as the leading seller of both petrol and diesel for the quarter. The company moved 147,700,600 litres of petrol and 94,944,500 litres of diesel between January and March, outpacing every competitor in those two high-volume categories. Together, the two Ghanaian-owned companies moved close to half a billion litres of fuel in a single quarter.
The data places international brands below both domestic leaders. Vivo Energy Ghana, the local licensee of the Shell brand, finished third with 145,472,100 litres, while Zen Petroleum secured fourth position with over 103 million litres. TotalEnergies, another multinational with a long footprint in the market, placed fifth with 93,029,530 litres.
The rankings reflect a structural shift that has been building for several years. Star Oil consolidated a market leadership position in the first half of 2025, recording a 41.02 percent increase in product volumes to reach 403.3 million litres, at the time overtaking GOIL in total market share. GOIL’s Q1 2026 recovery signals that competition between the two remains intense.
GOIL Group Chief Executive Officer Edward Abambire Bawa confirmed the company’s return to the top position, crediting the dedication of staff, dealers, and forecourt personnel across the organisation. “Let us not relent. This milestone is only a foundation,” he said in a statement to staff.
Ghana currently has approximately 141 licensed oil marketing companies, making competition particularly fierce, with the top five players together accounting for roughly 40 percent of the total market.
The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) regulates pricing, licensing, and volumes across the sector. Its data underpins the quarterly rankings that track performance across petrol, diesel and other refined products.
