Ghana: GNPC Shares Petroleum Sector Experience With Eswatini’s National Oil Company Delegation

Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) has shared its petroleum sector experience with a three-member delegation from the Eswatini National Petroleum Company (ENPC), which is visiting Ghana to learn from the country’s industry and explore opportunities for cooperation.

The delegation is led by ENPC board member Dumezweni Dlamini and includes Chief Executive Nontombi Motsa and General Manager for Strategy and Communications Musa Shongwe.

The delegation is meeting GNPC, the Petroleum Commission and other institutions across Ghana’s petroleum value chain to learn about the country’s institutional, technical and commercial experience.

Motsa said ENPC wanted to understand how Ghana’s petroleum sector had evolved and identify areas for collaboration.

As Eswatini develops its petroleum sector and institutional capacity, she said, it could draw lessons from an African national oil company with relevant experience.

GNPC Chief Executive Kwame Ntow Amoah outlined the corporation’s development over four decades and key milestones in Ghana’s petroleum industry.

He explained that the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition provides policy direction, the Petroleum Commission regulates the upstream sector, and GNPC represents the state’s commercial interests and participates in petroleum operations.

Amoah said GNPC had performed broader sector functions in its early years, with those responsibilities changing as the industry matured.

He also outlined GNPC’s participation in upstream operations, its mandate as the national gas aggregator and its use of subsidiaries to develop expertise and expand its commercial activities.

GNPC’s strategy was to build a more integrated organisation, drawing on its expertise and commercial interests across upstream, midstream and downstream operations, he said.

Amoah identified sustaining output, reversing production declines and advancing exploration as key priorities. He said growing interest from major international energy companies pointed to renewed prospects for exploration and investment in Ghana.

Hamis Ussif, GNPC’s deputy chief executive for finance, commercial and administration, encouraged ENPC to develop an institutional structure suited to the current stage of Eswatini’s petroleum industry.

He stressed the need to establish institutional foundations before significant exploration and production activities begin. He also highlighted the growing role of natural gas in GNPC’s business, particularly in supplying power plants and industry.

Michael Aryeetey, deputy chief executive for exploration and production, said technical, commercial and institutional expertise should be developed alongside a strong local content framework and appropriate laws and regulations.

He said GNPC was ready to share its experience and provide technical assistance as ENPC develops its capabilities.

The engagement included a presentation on GNPC’s mandate, assets, organisational structure and medium- to long-term strategy.

Dlamini said the visit offered an opportunity to learn from African expertise and identify practices that could be adapted to Eswatini’s circumstances while strengthening ties between the two companies.