Ghana’s specifications for gasoline and gasoil which are set at a Sulphur content of 50 parts per million (ppm) is the cleanest in the West African sub-region, the downstream petroleum regulator NPA CEO, Dr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, has said.
Dr Abdul-Hamid was speaking as a panel member on: ‘Downstream Decarbonisation and Circularity–Going Full Circle’, at the Egypt Energy Show in Cairo, Egypt.
He said that calls on the government by civil society organisations and the public to adhere to the decarbonisation objectives and the protection of the environment caused the policy change in Ghana to reduce the Sulphur content in fuel to 50 ppm.
The NPA Chief Executive, who is also the President of the African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA), said Ghana is changing the LPG distribution model to improve clean cooking across the country.
He said a series of accidents at LPG refilling stations in the past, the need to improve the environment, prevent deforestation and improve the lives of rural women especially have made the new LPG distribution model called the Cylinder Recirculation Model (CRM) more imperative.
He emphasised that the CRM would enhance access to LPG, as exchange points are being constructed across the country.
He added that the government’s LPG for Development Programme aims to achieve a 50 per cent penetration of LPG in households across the country by 2030.
Dr Abdul-Hamid disclosed that the government provides free LPG cylinders to poor households in rural areas under the programme.
He said people could not afford cylinders and cookstoves in the first place, and that informed their reliance on wood fuels.
Besides, the NPA Boss said the government has ordered 100 electric-powered buses for the Metro Mass Transit Limited (MMT) as a way of showing an example in the energy transition agenda.
Dr Abdul-Hamid also highlighted the government’s policy for state institutions to be powered by solar.
He indicated that an incentive has been given to private individuals who want to power their institutions and houses on solar.
Dr Abdul-Hamid lauded the freedom of speech in Ghana, which encourages civil society organisations and the public to the agenda towards cleaner energy in the country.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com