NEWS

Edmond Kombat Named Deputy MD to Revive Tema Oil Refinery

Edmond Kombat Appointed Deputy MD of Tema Oil Refinery to Spearhead Revitalization

President John Dramani Mahama has named Edmond B. Kombat the new Deputy Managing Director of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) in a calculated attempt to improve operational effectiveness and financial stability. Given the operational and financial difficulties facing the state-owned refinery, his hiring comes at a critical moment.

Edmond B. Kombat is an accomplished lawyer, energy strategist, and financial specialist. He has vast knowledge of financial markets, corporate management, and energy policy. He is the founder chairman of Edkom Group. Before being appointed, he worked as TOR’s Managing Director’s Special Assistant, where he helped secure $110 million in investments and put operational improvements into place that reportedly saved Ghana $300 million.

Reacting to his new role, Mr. Kombat expressed gratitude to President Mahama, stating, “I am deeply honored and humbled by the trust placed in me. I am committed to working tirelessly to restore TOR’s operational efficiency and financial viability.”

Due to deteriorating infrastructure, erratic crude supply, and growing debt, TOR has been working well below its installed capacity of 45,000 barrels per day. Ghana has become more dependent on imported refined fuel as a result of its refining sector’s inability to compete with imported petroleum products. Africa’s overall refining capacity is roughly 3 million barrels per day, which covers slightly more than half of the continent’s demand, according to the African Refiners & Distributors Association (ARDA).

Mr. Kombat has long advocated for reforms to position TOR as a “symbol of national pride, operational excellence, and financial sustainability.” His vision aligns with Ghana’s broader efforts to strengthen energy security amid volatile global oil prices and rising domestic fuel consumption.

One of his responsibilities as a co-founder of the Institute for Energy Security (IES) is to advocate for legislative changes that will improve Ghana’s energy resilience. Funding for TOR’s modernization and growth projects will be made possible in large part by his knowledge of international investment tactics and financial markets.

Mr. Kombat has an impressive career that includes work in business strategy, financial research, and energy advice in addition to his position at TOR. Working as a financial analyst at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in London and with energy businesses in South Africa, Tanzania, and Mozambique are among his prior positions. A certified stockbroker with the Ghana Stock Exchange, he received his Master of Public Administration (MPA) from Harvard University as an Edward S. Mason Fellow.