The Ghana Navy’s Western Naval Command has seized eight unregistered boats suspected of being used for illegal fuel bunkering at the New Takoradi and Poasi landing beaches in the Western Region.
The operation, carried out on March 31, 2026, followed intelligence reports indicating that some unregistered vessels were being used to facilitate the unlawful transfer of fuel and other petroleum products.
The Director of the Western Regional Fisheries Commission, Dr. Charles Teye, clarified after the exercise that the boats were not recognised as fishing vessels and were not registered with the Fisheries Commission, meaning they were operating entirely outside the legal framework. He explained that the seizure was carried out under Sections 53 and 54 of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Act, 2023, which require permits for the construction and operation of vessels.
Officials from key maritime and regulatory bodies, including the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA), the Fisheries Commission, the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), and the Marine Police Unit of the Ghana Police Service, were present to inspect the seized boats as part of efforts to ensure transparency.
The Acting Branch Head of the GMA in Takoradi, Hudeen Daud Ahmed, commended the Ghana Navy for the operation, noting that the Authority remains committed to safeguarding Ghana’s maritime space and protecting the livelihoods of citizens through collaboration with other institutions.
The vessels have since been towed to the Sekondi Naval Harbour for further investigations and possible legal action. The operation was led by the Western Naval Command in Sekondi, with support from the 2 Infantry Battalion.
The operation, code-named “Operation Don’t Complain,” forms part of a broader push by the Ghana Navy to dismantle illegal fuel bunkering networks along the country’s western coastline. The Western Region’s proximity to Ghana’s offshore oil infrastructure has made it a recurring flashpoint for maritime economic crime.
The latest seizure follows a pattern of escalating enforcement activity across both the western and eastern corridors. In January 2026, the Eastern Naval Command (ENC) intercepted seven modified canoes suspected of illicit fuel bunkering activities about one nautical mile off the coast of Aflao, with the Flag Officer Commanding the ENC, Commodore Solomon Asiedu-Larbi, warning that the practice leads to revenue losses through tax evasion, fuel adulteration, and environmental pollution that endangers marine ecosystems.
In a separate operation in February 2026, the Western Naval Command seized suspected fuel being offloaded from a canoe at the Sekondi Fishing Harbour in an intelligence-led exercise, with the Flag Officer Commanding warning that illegal bunkering undermines legitimate businesses, endangers lives at sea, and contributes to marine pollution with serious adverse effects on coastal and fishing communities.
The repeated seizures underscore the scale of the challenge Ghana’s naval forces are working to contain. Fuel bunkering syndicates typically use larger vessels offshore to offload stolen petroleum into smaller, purpose-built boats for smuggling to coastal landing sites, making surveillance and interception both complex and resource-intensive.
