GNPC working to reposition Ghana as energy hub
The Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) is working to reposition Ghana as the energy hub in the sub-region by ensuring that the country is energy independent and self-sufficient to meet demand.
“The merits of energy independence and self-sufficiency to Ghana’s economy cannot be over-emphasised because it holds the key to positioning the country as the power hub of the West Africa sub-region and, most importantly, boost the industrialisation drive of the government,” the Chief Executive Officer of the GNPC, Dr K.K. Sarpong said this in an interview with the Graphic Business in Accra over the weekend.
Subsequently, the GNPC has confirmed that it is in talks with West Africa Gas BVI Limited (WAGL) to modify the gas sale agreement (GSA) which the WAGL signed with the government in 2015 as part of its drive to get the best for the country and move the energy agenda forward.
The renegotiated agreement with the WAGL is expected to be concluded by the end of the month to pave way for the commencement of the multi-million gas project in the Western Region by the first quarter of this year.
He said on completion, the project was expected to significantly increase energy security in Ghana, “providing the country with approximately 657,360,000 million British thermal units (mmbtu) of competitively priced gas over the lifetime of the project in a cost-effective and environmentally responsible manner”.
A BTU is a measure of the energy content in fuel used in power, steam generation, heating and air conditioning industries.
The renegotiated agreement is to help save the country hundreds of millions of dollars from the contract meant, among other things, to transform the country’s fledging oil and gas industry.
The move, which is seen by industry experts as a positive step by the GNPC towards ensuring value for money in favour of the government and the people of Ghana, is aimed at re-negotiating some of the key terms of the agreement.