Sahara Group urges journalists to look beyond fuel prices in energy reporting

Sahara Group has urged journalists to move beyond reporting fuel prices and production figures to explain how decisions across the energy sector affect consumers, investment and supply security. The call came during a knowledge-sharing session for energy reporters at the newly commissioned Asharami Ghana LPG Storage Facility in Tema. Held under the theme, “Beyond the Barrels: The Energy Story Behind the Story”, the session explored the petroleum value chain and how journalists can make complex developments more accessible to the public. Sahara Group’s Head of Corporate Communications, Bethel Obioma, said effective energy reporting should connect industry developments to their implications for households and businesses. “Energy reporting must go beyond announcing production figures, pump-price adjustments, or new infrastructure. The real value lies in helping the public understand what the numbers mean, what drives them and how decisions across the value chain affect supply, affordability, investment, and everyday life.” He encouraged journalists to establish the facts, identify the relevant regulator and segment of the value chain, verify figures and dates, and consult credible sources before publishing. He also stressed the need to simplify technical information without compromising accuracy. The session examined activities from resource discovery and production to trading, refining, transportation, storage, marketing and retail. It highlighted how decisions at each stage can influence prices, fuel availability and consumers’ experiences. Executive Director of Energy News Africa Ltd, Michael Creg Afful, urged reporters to question the context behind energy statistics, saying figures require clear dates, units and credible sources to be meaningful. He also encouraged journalists to distinguish between operators, partners, service companies and licence holders, while developing a better understanding of the responsibilities of upstream, midstream and downstream regulators. Mr Afful further urged reporters to build networks of credible experts and verify technical claims before publication. For his part, the Chief Executive Officer of the Chamber of Oil Marketing Companies, Ghana, Dr Riverson Oppong, said reporting on pump prices should explain the international and domestic factors that determine what consumers pay. He identified liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefied natural gas (LNG), electric vehicle charging, digital platforms, strategic partnerships and data analytics as areas deserving greater attention as petroleum businesses respond to changing energy demand. Dr Oppong said affordability, supply security, market discipline and readiness for the energy transition would shape the competitiveness and sustainability of Ghana’s downstream petroleum sector. Mr Obioma encouraged journalists to remain curious and continually deepen their knowledge of the industry. “Beyond the barrels means giving the public not only what happened, but the context, causes and implications behind it. Our responsibility as communicators and journalists is to make an increasingly complex energy industry understandable without sacrificing accuracy.”