BOST: More than $1bn debt settled – MD says
The management of the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company Limited (BOST) has reportedly cleared the company’s entire debt, following years of mismanagement.
According to the Managing Director, Edwin Provencal, when the new management took over in 2017, they faced a trade liability of $624 million for unpaid products and a legacy debt of GHC416 million, as well as claims from Bulk Oil Distributing Companies (BDCs) totalling $37 million.
However, Provencal has announced that the company has now paid off 98% of its $624 million trade liability debt, with 70% being paid through internally generated funds and the remaining 30% through government support through ESLA bonds.
The GHC416 million legacy debt has been fully cleared, and after a forensic audit, the $37 million BDC claim was reduced to $11 million, saving the company and the country $26 million.
According to Provenal, the company’s financial turnaround has been achieved through the implementation of a five-year transformational plan, which has seen the company focus on fixing and restoring its non-performing equipment and rebranding itself to improve its image.
As a result of these efforts, BOST has now recorded a profit after tax and operational costs, with a profit of GHC168.8 million recorded last year, after 11 years of losses.
The successful management of BOST’s finances and operations is a positive development for the state-owned enterprise and a testament to the efforts of its management team.
