Zimbabwe: Gov’t Approves MoU For Nuclear Energy Cooperation With Russia
Zimbabwean Government has approved a Memorandum of Understanding that seeks to facilitate a high level of cooperation between Zimbabwe and Russia in the use of nuclear energy by laying a foundation for the execution of the agreed areas of cooperation.
The country’s Minister for Information Monica Mutsvangwa confirmed the development at a press conference last week.
“Cabinet considered and approved the MoU (Memorandum of Agreement) between Zimbabwe and the Russian Federation State Atomic Energy Corporation, which was presented by the Attorney General on behalf of the chairman of the Cabinet Committee on Legislation,” she said as carried by Esi-africa.com.
The agreement was signed with the Russian state-owned company, State Atomic Energy Corporation.
Joint Working Groups will be established to identify specific projects to facilitate the cooperation, including exploring the feasibility of constructing a centre for nuclear science and technology.
In 2019, Zimbabwe joined the International Atomic Energy Agency an initial stage in uranium enrichment.
The move then was necessitated by a dire shortage of electricity as the country only produced 650MW against a national demand of 1,700MW.
The country discovered uranium deposits in the coal rich Hwange and Binga districts with exploration still in progress.
Zimbabwe has not been spared from the impact of climate change, which has, among other effects, seen the decline of water levels in Lake Kariba.
An alternate source of energy will remove dependence on Lake Kariba and hydropower. The anticipated cooperation in the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes will strengthen the energy mix and provide alternative sources of energy that Zimbabwe needs.
Oil Trader Vitol Sees Crude Demand Recovering Quickly
The head of Vitol Group, the world’s biggest independent oil trader, expects crude demand to come roaring back this year and next as the world emerges from the pandemic.
Demand for crude will increase by 7 million to 8 million barrels a day by the end of 2022, up from current levels, and producers will be stretched to meet that surge, Vitol Chief Executive Officer Russell Hardy said in an interview.
“We will need all eight cylinders to get through 2022,” Hardy said. “We believe $70 to $75 a barrel is an entirely sensible outcome for the third quarter,” he said, making a rare specific call on oil prices.
It’s a bullish call for a solid recovery in global petroleum use after the pandemic caused demand for jet fuel, diesel and gasoline to collapse. Vitol handled more than 7 million barrels of crude and products a day in 2020, giving it keen insight into fluctuations in global supplies and demand.
Global oil demand remains about 3.5 million barrels a day below pre-pandemic levels, Hardy said. Consumption should rebound by year-end as Covid-19 vaccines continue to be rolled out, lockdowns are lifted and travel for leisure and business resumes.
“The gap is slowly closing as economies reopen and Eastern growth takes us higher,” Hardy said. Still, he cautioned that a recent spike in Covid-19 cases in India and other virus hotspots could derail the recovery.
Hardy sees demand for jet fuel continuing to lag a rebound in other petroleum products, with demand still expected to be about 1.5 million barrels a day below pre-pandemic levels by year-end. The shortfall in aviation fuel consumption will be offset by a similar sized 1.5-million-barrel a day increase in use for other oil products, such as petrochemicals used in plastics, Hardy said.
Oil traders and producers rushed to fill up tanks on land and at sea a year ago as the pandemic and government-imposed lockdowns crimped demand. The price of a key U.S. oil benchmark briefly traded below zero as there was nowhere to store the excess oil. This week, West Texas Intermediate futures are trading at around $64 a barrel.
Energy traders made huge gains last year storing cheap crude in tanks or ships they owned or leased and selling forward futures contracts at higher prices. Vitol earned around $3 billion in profit in 2020, according to people familiar with its accounts, the best financial result in its history. The closely-held company doesn’t disclose its annual earnings.
Hardy said more than half of the 1 billion barrels of excess oil stocks squirreled away in response to the market collapse in 2020 have already been drained. The excess inventory draw downs should be largely completed by the end of the third quarter of this year, even with planned production increases by OPEC. About 2 million barrels a day are currently being drawn down and that pace will continue through June, July and August, according to Hardy.
President & CEO Of MODEC ResignsAfter collapsing a year-ago, crude has roared back amid a recovery in Asia, positive vaccine news and the lifting of lockdowns in some countries. International benchmark Brent has gained about 30% in 2021 as investors bet the re-openings will stoke consumption and keep draining inventories. Call on OPEC Hardy said the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies will have to step up production to meet the expected increase in demand even with “leakage” from U.S.-sanctioned Iran contributing about 1.5 million barrels a day of supply. “That’s going to come from OPEC because there is no other massive expansion coming because there is generally capital discipline across the West,” Hardy said, suggesting hobbled U.S. shale production won’t be able to significantly respond. OPEC+ has decided to revive just over 2 million barrels a day of the 8 million barrels of production it’s been keeping offline. The supply will be returned in stages over the three months to July. The producer group is discussing downgrading next week’s full-scale ministerial meeting, delegates said, a signal the coalition may stick with plans to gradually revive oil production. “OPEC will be in charge for the second half of the year,” Hardy said Source:Worldoil.com
Ghana: Energy Minister Inspects Pokuase Bulk Supply Point Project
Ghana’s Minister for Energy, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, on Tuesday, inspected the biggest Bulk Supply Point (BSP) which is currently under construction at Pokuase, a suburb of Accra, capital of Ghana.
The project, which is 97 percent complete, would hold 580 Megawatts of power and help address the current low voltage being experienced at Kwabenya, Ofankor, Legon, Nsawam, Anyah, Adenta and other parts of Accra.
The US$60 million project is being funded by the United States Government through the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) under the Ghana Power Compact II Agency.
The project is being implemented by the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) with Spanish electrical company, Elecnor SA, as the contractor.
While several locals have been given direct jobs, the contractor has also spent over US$2 million on corporate social responsibility projects such as road construction and donations to health facilities within the catchment areas.
Over US$10 million had also been spent on local sub-contractors for undertaking some aspects of the project in compliance with the local content policy directives.
Electricity in Kwabenya and other parts of Accra is expected to be curtailed from May 10 to 17, this year, to allow GRIDCo to energise the Pokuase BSP.
This would be followed with official commissioning of the facility on May 31, 2021.
Speaking to the media, Energy Minister, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh called on Ghanaians to bear with the situation, stressing that it has become necessary due to government’s effort to make power supply more reliable.
‘‘So we plead with you to bear with us. This has become necessary because of government’s investment in the power sector. The idea is to make power supply even better after the works are done,” he stressed.
The Chief Executive Officer of GRIDCo, Ing. Jonathan Amoako Baah, who was also on the tour, explained that all outages are occasioned by necessary demands.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Over US$10 million had also been spent on local sub-contractors for undertaking some aspects of the project in compliance with the local content policy directives.
Electricity in Kwabenya and other parts of Accra is expected to be curtailed from May 10 to 17, this year, to allow GRIDCo to energise the Pokuase BSP.
This would be followed with official commissioning of the facility on May 31, 2021.
Speaking to the media, Energy Minister, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh called on Ghanaians to bear with the situation, stressing that it has become necessary due to government’s effort to make power supply more reliable.
‘‘So we plead with you to bear with us. This has become necessary because of government’s investment in the power sector. The idea is to make power supply even better after the works are done,” he stressed.
The Chief Executive Officer of GRIDCo, Ing. Jonathan Amoako Baah, who was also on the tour, explained that all outages are occasioned by necessary demands.
Ghana: Nuclear Power Is Safest Source of Energy-Dr Stephen Yamoah
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Ghana: Nuclear Power Is Future Of Electricity- Norbert Anku
The future of the world’s electricity is nuclear power, energy expert, Norbert Anku, has stated.
He noted that with the growth in the world’s population and increasing demand for electricity, nuclear power is the best option to meet the growing demand for electricity.
“The world’s population is growing and electricity demand is growing. Unfortunately, our hydro resources are getting exhausted,” he said.
Although International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) is leading global effort to shift from fossil fuel-based power plants to renewables such as solar, wind waste to energy and hydrogen energy, in compliance with Climate Change agenda, Ing Norbert Anku, who is the immediate past Managing Director of Enclave Power, insisted that nuclear power is the best option of energy sources for countries that want to industrialise for affordability and reliability.
“If we really want to provide electricity cheaply for our needs and cost effectiveness, then, I don’t see any other source that can potentially compete with nuclear power,” he argued.
Ing. Norbert Anku posited that it was about time those who are criticizing Ghana’s nuclear power agenda and pushing for renewable energy sources such as solar and wind in favour of nuclear power took a second look at their stance on solar and wind energy.
He said apart from the fact that large scale solar farm requires a vast land for its construction; bad weather conditions can also pose a serious challenge to its delivery of electricity.
“Assuming we have about 1000 megawatts solar plant in the North and GRIDCo picks a signal that they will be getting 1000MW from solar online at 12 noon and the metro forecasts that there is the movement of blanket of cloud, that 1000MW will be shut down and they will have to look for conventional power to cover the shortfall…that is the challenge,” he stated.
He stressed the need for Ghana to continue with its nuclear power agenda, stating that “if it is our intention to industrialise, then, we need nuclear power.”
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
India Is Pushing For More Coal Capacity
One of the world’s largest carbon dioxide emitters, India, could add more coal-fired electricity generation capacity despite the global push for clean power sources.
India could still need new coal capacity in the coming years to balance more renewable energy sources, also because coal is still the cheapest source of generation, according to a draft new strategy, National Electricity Policy (NEP) 2021, which Reuters has seen.
“While India is committed to add more capacity through non-fossil sources of generation, coal-based generation capacity may still be required to be added in the country as it continues to be the cheapest source of generation,” reads the draft document, as carried by Reuters.
Still, the strategy, which has not been unveiled, has clean power generation as the main objective, according to the document.
India is the third-largest emitter of carbon dioxide in the world, behind China and the United States.
Last month, state miner Coal India approved as many as 32 new coal mining projects worth a total investment of US$6.4 billion, as one of the world’s largest coal consumers, looks to reduce reliance on imports as its coal demand continues to grow.
A total of 24 of the 32 projects will be for the expansion of existing operations, while eight will be greenfield projects, Indian media quoted the company as saying this week.
While major developed economies look to reduce reliance on coal as part of emission reduction goals, India, which will be the key driver of global energy demand in the coming decades, continues to rely heavily on coal, and its demand is expected to continue to rise.
Despite its renewable and low-carbon push, India continues to bet big on coal, and the share of coal in total primary energy consumed has been broadly stable, around 56 percent in recent years, according to BP’s Energy Outlook 2020.
Source: Oilprice.com
Ghana: Increasing Tariff For ECG And NEDCo At This Time, Is Promoting Inefficiency: IES
There is an ongoing conversation among particularly players in the power sector to have electricity price adjusted upward to enable the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo) raise enough revenue to retool the power transmission and distribution networks, to ensure reliable power supply.
Well enough. It is easy to say Ghanaians are not paying cost-reflective tariff for electricity and as a result price increases is justified, if one is oblivious of the real “cost components” used in the determination of the cost per kilowatt-hour (KWh) of the commodity.
It may interest consumers to know that among the many variables the Public Utility Regulatory Commission (PURC) considers in arriving at the cost per KWh of electricity, is allowable transmission and distribution losses.
For many years, the benchmark set for the losses have remained extremely high, compared to global industrial average of 10 percent for both power transmission and distribution. In Asia, China is an example of a country with combined transmission and distribution loss benchmark of as low as 5.6 percent, and which has not recorded a total grid failure in the last 30 years. In Southern Africa with large grids, it compares with the global average of 10 percent.
In Ghana, the PURC allowable loss (benchmark) for the two streams was granted as 26.7 percent for 2019, a little above the 2016 benchmark of 25 percent. What this means is that the regulator have agreed to accommodate losing more than a quarter of the power generated by the country. The most disappointing aspect is that even though the PURC offers the transmitter (GRIDCo) and distributors (ECG/NEDCo) that high benchmark for losses, the utilities records annual losses, sometimes in excess of 30 percent.
Today, it is on public records that the ECG and NEDCo are losing millions of dollars on annual basis in revenue, due to system inefficiencies. The Institute for Energy Security’s (IES’) analysis of data from the Energy Commission (EC), shows that in 2019 for instance, the combined transmission and distribution loss stood 29.4 percent of total power transmitted (approximately 18,000 GWh), with a corresponding monetary value of approximately US$725 million; based on an average end-user tariff of US$0.137/KWh.
Using PURC’s allowable loss margin of 26.7 for 2019, the actual revenue loss incurred by GRIDCo, ECG and NEDCo, was found to be roughly US$67 million. However, based on the global combined benchmark of 10 percent and sub-Saharan Africa’s (SSA) average of 18 percent, the revenue loss to the three utilities is estimated at US$478 million and US$281 million respectively.
This means that there could be enough cash to begin to address the technical inefficiencies in the distribution network should the bit about the ECG and NEDCo’s commercial inefficiencies relating to cash collection from power consumed be saved. To the extent that the ECG can easily address the commercial inefficiencies (which constitute than 55 percent of total distribution losses) in the system to save money, increasing tariff at this particular moment,can easily be interpreted as “endorsing and promoting inefficiencies”.
We are not in normal times. Jobs have been lost, pay-cuts has been occasioned, and money cannot be borrowed easily; thanks to Covid-19. The least distributors can do is to make available consistent but reliable electricity to consumers, and not to introduce additional financial burden to consumers.
It must be noted also that any attempt to raise the cost of electricity for industries, without addressing first the current instability in power supply, would lead to an increase in captive power generation. That is to say, high cost of power may force industry to move away from the national grid, leading to more stranded (excess) power.
Additionally, if the PURC supervises any tariff increase, Ghana’s power sector would become uncompetitive in the regional electricity trade via the West Africa Power Pool (WAPP). Government on many occasions has said that the country is unable to sell its excess power capacity to Togo, Benin, and Burkina Faso because of high tariff. So increasing cost per kilowatt-hour of electricity would produce extra excess power.
As a result, ECG and NEDCo, as a matter of urgency must interrogate their cost profiles for transmission and distribution, value addition and others, to place them on the path of recovery and profit making. Because in other jurisdictions where utilities are recording profits, they do that largely on the basis of system improvement through innovation, and not necessarily through tariff increment. In addition, the PURC will outlive its usefulness and objectivity if it is compelled to approve of any tariff increase for ECG and NEDCo.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Ghana: Repeal Laws Pertaining Third -Party Supplies –AOMC To Gov’t
The Association of Oil Marketing Companies in the Republic of Ghana is urging the Government of Ghana to repeal all laws, regulations and rules which allow Oil Marketing Companies to engage in third party supplies companies.
This call follows recent concerns expressed by Vice President of Ghana, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, that some OMCs in good standing with regulators supply fuel to heavily indebted OMCs that are determined to evade payment of statutory levies and margins.
In a statement copied to energynewsafrica.com, the Association of Oil Marketing Companies described the development as worrying and called for immediate action to deal with the OMCs engaging in the act.
“This inappropriate behaviour by few OMCs have become an issue of great concern to other marketers who are dutifully complying to the ethics and rules of the industry, diminishing their market share and sales volume.
“These disloyal actions further distort industry figures, affect profitability of the already struggling OMC business and negatively affect unfair price wars in the industry,’’ the statement said.
The AOMC said it would not support any form of illegality even for its own members and would like to state unreservedly that, it has never supported and shall not support or back any OMC engaging in any form of third-party supplies.
“We would like to, however, encourage OMCs who are indebted to the NPA, BOST or GRA to approach these institutions to discuss a payment plan for resumption of their business operations and the AOMC would lend its support in this regard.
“It is our fervent hope that all OMCs & LPGMCs shall abide by industry ethics and standards in their fuel marketing operations to ensure a level playing field which contributes to the development of our country Ghana,” the statement said.
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
Nigeria: Power Supply To Improve In Sokoto State As TCN Completes Transmission Line Project
Electricity supply in the Sokoto State and its environs in the Federal Republic of Nigeria is expected to improve in the coming days.
This is because the country’s power transmission company, TCN, has completed the reconductoring of its new 130 kilometres 132kV double circuit Sokoto-Birnin Kebbi transmission line.
This would transmit about 170MW, which is more than double the 70MW capacity previously transmitted by the decommissioned old 132kV transmission line.
The new 132kV transmission line has solved the low voltage and attendant poor power situation that used to be prevalent in the Sokoto axis, as TCN is now enabled to substantially transmit increased bulk power electricity to Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company’s distribution load centers in Sokoto State and environs.
This also means that Kaduna DisCo would equally be able to deliver more stable and quality power to its customers in that axis.
Prior to the reconductoring of the line, the Sokoto–Birnin Kebbi 132kV transmission line, was overloaded due to increased demand, arising from massive increase in human population and attendant socio-economic activities in the area.
The new line has solved the problem of overloading/ suppressed load and has ample capacity for anticipated load increase.
Nigeria: Boko Haram Group Bomb TCN Transmission Towers Leaving Over 800,000 People In Maiduguri Without ElectricityThe project, which commenced in November, last year, was carried out in phases in order to ameliorate the effect of scheduled outages on electricity consumers during the period. Some areas did not experience outage through the period as they were backfed through another line. “We are sincerely grateful to the government and good people of Sokoto State and Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company for their patience and cooperation during the period of the transmission line reconductoring,” the company said in a statement issued by Ndidi Mbah, General Manager in charge of Public Affairs. Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Senegal: Wärtsilä Gas Conversion Project Will Accelerate Senegal’s Move To Cleaner Energy Production
The technology group Wärtsilä will convert the almost 90 MW Bel-Air power plant in Dakar, Senegal to operate on liquefied natural gas (LNG).
The plant, which is owned by Senelec, Senegal’s public utility company, currently, operates on heavy fuel oil.
The conversion will future-proof the facility as Senegal’s long-term strategy is to lower the carbon footprint of energy production by switching to gas when a domestic supply is available.
This project is part of an interim LNG-to-Power ‘bridge’ solution, and is the first ever power plant gas conversion in Senegal. The order with Wärtsilä was booked in Q1 2021.
“Our two main aims were to improve the plant’s environmental profile and to lower the operating costs. By taking advantage of Wärtsilä’s deep experience and strong capabilities in power plant gas conversions, we can achieve both of these goals. At the same time, we are preparing the plant for the country’s future gas supply infrastructure,” Papa Mademba Biteye, Managing Director of Senelec said.
“Future-proofing the customer’s assets to meet the requirements over the lifecycle via a gas conversion is far more cost-effective than building a new plant. It also facilitates the greater use of energy from renewable sources, such as solar and wind, since the converted plant will be able to provide highly flexible, fast-starting baseload power for balancing the grid,” commented Marc Thiriet, Energy Business Director, Africa West, Wärtsilä.
The Bel-Air plant’s existing six Wärtsilä 46 engines will be converted to six Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel engines.
Wärtsilä’s current operation & maintenance agreement covering the existing engines is being renegotiated in view of the conversion. Wärtsilä’s dual-fuel engine technology allows the use of multiple fuels, providing the option to operate on gas with liquid fuels as back-up.
Besides the engine conversion, the project will cover all aspects to ensure successful operations on gas.
Everything from safety to operational reliability are taken into account, with control functions, mechanical auxiliary systems, as well as electrical and automation systems being changed or upgraded as required. As part of the engineering, procurement, and construction contract, Wärtsilä will manage all phases of the project, which is expected to be completed before the end of 2021.
In addition to the Bel-Air plant, Senelec also has three other Wärtsilä power plants in operation in Senegal. Wärtsilä has a leading position in supplying flexible power generation to West Africa with 4792 MW of capacity installed.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
India: Electricity Consumption Grows Nearly 45 Per Cent In First Half Of April
Power consumption in India grew nearly 45 per cent in the first half of April to 60.62 billion units (BU) over the corresponding period a year ago, showing robust recovery in industrial and commercial demand of electricity, according to power ministry data.
Power consumption in the first half of April last year (from April 1 to 15, 2020) was recorded at 41.91 BU.
On the other hand, the peak power demand met, which is the highest supply in a day, during the first half of this month remained well above the highest record of 132.20 GW in the same period in April 2020.
During the first half this month, peak power demand touched the highest level of 182.55 GW on April 8, 2021, and recorded a growth of 38 per cent over 132.20 GW recorded in the entire month of April last year.
Power consumption in April last year had dropped to 84.55 BU from 110.11 BU in the same month in 2019. This happened mainly because of fewer economic activities following imposition of lockdown by the government in the last week of March 2020 to contain the spread of deadly COVID-19.
Similarly, peak power demand met also slumped to 132.20 GW in April last year from 176.81 GW in the same month in 2019, showing the impact of lockdown on economic activities.
Experts are of the view that high growth in power consumption as well as demand in the first half this month is mainly because of base effect.
They said, “The power consumption remained low in April last year due to lockdown. Now the high growth rate of power consumption clearly indicates healthy recovery in commercial and industrial demand.”
However, they cautioned that local lockdowns across the country to curb the surge of COVID-19 positive cases may impact commercial and industrial power consumption adversely in coming days.
After a gap of six months, power consumption had recorded a 4.6 per cent year-on-year growth in September and 11.6 per cent in October. In November 2020, the power consumption growth slowed to 3.12 per cent, mainly due to the early onset of winters. In December, power consumption grew by 4.5 per cent while it was 4.4 per cent in January 2021.
Power consumption in February this year recorded higher at 104.11 BU compared to 103.81 BU last year despite the fact that 2020 was a leap year.
In March this year, the power consumption grew nearly 23 per cent to 121.51 BU compared to 98.95 BU in the same month of 2020.
During the entire fiscal of 2020-21, power consumption dipped by one per cent to 1,271.54 BU from 1,284.44 BU in 2019-20.
Nigeria: Federal Gov’t Is Working To End Power Outages-Power Minister
Nigeria’s Minister for Power, Eng. Sale Mamman says the Federal Government is aware of the power outages being experienced by Nigerians and is, therefore, working assiduously to resolve the challenges to ensure regular supply of power.
He noted that the problem has resulted in the breakdown of some National Integrated Power Plants supplying electricity to the national grid.
The plants are namely Sapele, Afam, Olonrunsogo, Omotosho, Ibom, Egbin, Alaoji and Ihovbor.
The Jebba Power Plant was shut down for annual maintenance.
Seven other integrated power plants namely Geregu, Sepele, Omotosho, Gbarain, Omuku, Paras and Alaoji are experiencing gas constraints while the Shiroro plant has water management problems.
In a statement issued by Aaron Artimas, Special Assistant, Media and Communications to the Minister, it said:
“This unfortunate development has drastically affected power generation, thus, effectively minimising the national grid.
“The Minister of Power, Eng. Sale Mamman, regrets this unfortunate situation and offers his sincere apology to all affected Nigerians on the inconveniences the power shortages are causing.”
He assured that the Ministry, through the appropriate agencies, is working assiduously to rectify the technical problems affecting the plants as well as resolving the gas issues to the others.
Eng. Sale Mamman further assured that the national grid would be restored to its previous historic distribution peak of about 5,600MW of electricity achieved early this year, so as to relieve Nigerians of the current harsh climatic conditions and restore full economic activities.
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
Facebook Sets Record As It Invests $8 Billion In Wind, Solar Projects
Leading social media platform, Facebook, has invested US$8 billion in renewable energy projects around the world.
In a post on his Facebook page, Thursday, ahead of the World Earth Day which falls on April 22, each year, CEO and Founder of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg said his company’s operations are now 100 percent supported by renewable energy.
“We’ve reached net zero emissions for our operations and we’re one of the largest buyers of renewable energy in the world, resulting in US$8 billion in 63 wind and solar projects around the world, creating tens of thousands of jobs,” he said.
“Thanks to our team and partners who helped reach this goal,” his post concluded.
The International Renewable Energy Agency estimates that investment in renewable energy is expected to reach 131 trillion by 2050.
This is aimed at addressing issues of climate change.
Ghana: Mother Weeps As Son Jailed 15 Years
A circuit court in Hohoe in the Volta Region of the Republic of Ghana has sentenced a former Manager of Star Oil into fifteen years’ jail term for stealing GH¢139,118 belonging to his employer.
The convict, Yussif Abubakar, was charged with stealing about two years ago.
He pleaded not guilty but was found guilty by the court after the full trial.
The trial judge, Mr Yaw Opoku Acheampong, in a 30-minute sentence, said he would have sentenced the convict to 20 years’ imprisonment but the convict, throughout the trial, showed remorse for his action.
Abubakar, whose lawyer was not present in court when judgment was pronounced, was also ordered to pay back the money to the company.
He is said to have used the money for sports betting but did not win any of the bets to enable him repay the money he took from the company’s coffers.
The jail term shocked his mother, who wept uncontrollably as she made her way out of the court room.
Facts
Presenting the facts of the case, the prosecution indicated that the convict was employed at Star Oil Company in Hohoe on November 17, 2012, as a washing bay manager and a pump attendant before rising through the ranks to become a Branch Supervisor for the same company on March 3, 2018.
According to prosecution, on November 19, 2019, Abubakar was asked by the company’s Public Relations Officer, Mr Setor Alorwu, to produce receipts of payment of sales made from November 11, 2019, to November 19, 2019, but he failed to do so.
That raised a suspicion of discrepancies in his accounts at the company.
A report was then lodged at the Hohoe Police Station on November 19, 2019, which led to Abubakar’s detention.
An audit was subsequently conducted into the company’s accounts and it was revealed that proceeds from sales to the tune of GH¢139,118 made from November 8-19, 2019, were missing from the sales records.
Abubakar, when questioned on the whereabouts of the money, admitted his inability to deposit the money into the company’s account, explaining that he used the money for sports betting.
Powerships: A solution For Africa’s Energy Short-Term Supply?
By: Andres Vega
Energy poverty represents one of the most critical challenges for development in Africa.
According to the International Energy Agency, in 2019, the continent had more than 580 million people without electricity access, with that number expected to grow to 660 million people by 2030.
Energy poverty is catastrophic not only on a macroeconomic level, but it also profoundly impacts people’s daily lives, as without energy, infrastructure, schools, hospitals, and other essential services cannot be developed.
Imagine a hospital losing power in the middle of a pandemic? It could cost lives. However, the South African government is currently implementing an excellent short-term option in a solid attempt to address this problem.
It is not new that Eskom faces difficulties providing adequate services, as load shedding on its network has become a regular occurrence. A report issued by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (“CSIR”) stated that South Africa had 859 hours of load shedding in 2020, representing roughly 10% of the year spent without electricity.
Even though load shedding stops country-wide blackouts, it still comes with a hefty cost, as estimations indicate that load shedding had an impact on South Africa’s economy of between R60 billion and R120 billion in 2019, with an estimated total impact as high as R338 billion since 2007.
Unfortunately, load shedding will continue to be a common occurrence in the near future as power generation in South Africa is not expected to meet demand. According to the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (“DMRE”), South Africa’s total domestic electricity generation capacity is 58,095 MW from all sources, produced chiefly by state-owned power company Eskom and primarily generated from coal. However, according to Eskom’s CEO, André de Ruyter, there is still an estimated 4,000MW shortfall in the amount the power utility will supply in the next half-decade.
However, the country has been making efforts to reach demand and address energy transition. The South African government approved the Integrated Resource Plan 2019 (“IRP”) outlining the energy mix for the next decade in an attempt to add more energy sources to the mix and the decommissioning of some of Eskom’s coal-fired power plants.
Also, to increase renewable capacity, the government has been allowing private companies to develop capacity under the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (“REIPPP”), which, despite some setbacks and a long awaited fifth bid, has been a good program. By March 2020, the REIPPP had procured a total of 6,422MW, with 4,201MW of generation capacity operational and made available to the grid.
These capacity-building efforts have not reached the required demand, and load shedding keeps happening to this date. However, to immediately meet the supply gap and avoid load shedding, in 2020, the South African government launched the Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (“RMIPPPP”), aiming to procure 2000MW by Q3 2022, with preferred bidders required to reach financial close by the end of July 2021. The RMIPPPP attracted much interest from independent power producers, as the DMRE received 28 offers with a potential contracted capacity of approximately 5,117MW. The DMRE selected eight preferred bidders for a total amount of 1,845 MW. While not being addressed in such a manner, the RMIPPPP is an “emergency” program to access electricity in the short term. It should be beneficial to South Africa and its people.
Of the offers received under the RMIPPPP, more than half (1,220MW) of the capacity from the preferred bidders will be generated by three power ships that will be supplied by Karpowership, a subsidiary of Turkey’s Karadeniz Energy Group, in the ports of Coega (450MW), Richards Bay (450MW) and Saldanha (320MW), under 20-year PPAs. These power ships will produce energy from liquified natural gas (“LNG”). According to Business Insider South Africa, they will feed energy back into the grid at a cheaper cost than Eskom’s current diesel-burn rate.
These power ships have the advantage of providing almost immediate electricity, so they are an excellent option to meet the supply gap in the short term compared to the years it takes to design, award, and commission other types of power generation projects. Also, as the power ships generate energy from LNG, they are a viable option for most coastal countries, especially countries with access to such resource. Finally, power ships do not require any land or significant development. A connection to the LNG, either from a ship or onshore, is sufficient to get the power ships running.
Some West African countries as Ghana and Senegal, are currently analyzing this option. It should not stop there, as this could be a short-term solution to meet most coastal African countries’ energy supply, especially to gas producing countries as Nigeria, Mozambique, and Equatorial Guinea. While doing so, governments should not lose sight that this is only a short-term solution and should carefully plan for the projects’ economics and their power capacity building plans. Also, these countries should not forget other crucial matters as local content, black ownership (in the case of South Africa), and guarantees from the generators to mitigate any event in the duration of these type of projects.
This is not a proposal for African countries to stop developing long-term energy projects or abandon their goals of reducing greenhouse emissions by developing large-scale renewable energy projects. On the contrary, power ships should be considered a viable solution to address energy insecurity issues in the continent in the following years.
Africa and its people cannot wait for governments and companies to agree on the design, pricing, and financing of energy projects with a long development time. African countries need energy now. To grow their economies. To power their industries. And to achieve the most precise and laudable goal of every government: provide for their people.
Andres Vega is an International Associate at Centurion Law Group and has extensive experience in the implementation, development and financing of oil and gas and energy projects in some of the most important energy markets in the world. Andres obtained his LL.M. degree from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law in 2016, with a Certificate in Energy and Clean Technology. He received his law degree from the Universidad Iberoamericana, Mexico, in 2012. Andres is admitted to practice in Mexico (2012) and in the State of New York (2018).