Former Energy Minister, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, has refuted claims made by Bright Simons, Honorary Vice President of Imani Africa, regarding his role in issuing the 2020 unitisation directive between Springfield Exploration and Production Limited (Springfield) and Eni Ghana Exploration and Production Limited (ENI).
Dr. Prempeh’s response follows a post by Mr. Simons on social media platform X, which was also highlighted in a GhanaWeb publication on February 27, 2025. In his post, Mr. Simons suggested that Dr. Prempeh, as Energy Minister at the time, was responsible for issuing the directive.
However, Dr. Prempeh has clarified that he only assumed office as Energy Minister on March 7, 2021, and was serving as Education Minister in 2020 when the directive was issued.
The statement from Dr. Prempeh’s office emphasized that even a careful reading of the recent withdrawal letter signed by current Energy Minister, Hon. John Jinapor, would have revealed that all referenced directives were issued before his tenure at the Energy Ministry.
Dr. Prempeh, therefore, considers Mr. Simons’ assertion to be an avoidable error that could have been prevented with basic fact-checking.
“It is Dr. Prempeh’s considered view that opinions may be expressed on decisions by the new government on any matter, but same must be done with accuracy, circumspection, and decorum,” the statement noted.
As a matter of courtesy and good faith, Dr. Prempeh has demanded a retraction and an apology from Mr. Simons for what he describes as a wrongful attribution.
The controversy arises in the wake of the current government’s decision to withdraw the unitisation directive, citing concerns over its impact on Ghana’s oil and gas industry.
The directive, issued in 2020, had mandated the joint development of the Afina-1X Discovery and the Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh Refutes Unitisation Directive Attribution by Bright Simons Cenomanian Oil Field, a move that was contested by ENI.
With the matter now under scrutiny, stakeholders will be watching closely to see whether Mr. Simons will respond to Dr. Prempeh’s demand for a retraction.
Story By: Robicon Mornahson
