COP27: IRENA Director General Calls On Global Leaders To Bridge Renewable Energy Deployment Gap
The Director-General of the International Renewable Energy Agency, IRENA, Francesco La Camera, has called on global leaders to invest in renewable energy sources to bridge the renewable deployment gap in pursuit of resilience, energy security and inclusive economies.
According to the IRENA Director-General, renewables are the backbone of the energy transition and a viable climate solution.
Sadly, he noted that out of the 183 parties to the Paris Agreement with renewable energy components in their Nationally Determined Commitments (NDCs), only 143 have quantified targets with the vast majority focusing on the power sector. Only 12 countries had committed to a percentage of renewables in their overall energy mixes.
“At a time when we desperately need to see rapid implementation, I call on world leaders to urgently close the renewable deployment gap in pursuit of resilience, energy security and inclusive economies. IRENA’s report is a warning to the international community telling them that renewables offer a readily achievable climate solution but require immediate action. Climate pledges must enhance ambition to unlock the full and untapped potential of renewables.
“There is a need for real urgency. Despite some progress, the energy transition is far from being on track,” he added.
“Any near-term shortfall in action will further reduce the chance of keeping 1.5°C within reach. Under the COP27 slogan ‘Together for implementation’, we must move from promises to concrete solutions to benefit people and communities on the ground,” IRENA’s Director-General Francesco La Camera said in a statement issued on Monday at the opening of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Egypt.
To achieve current targets by 2030, IRENA stressed that countries would need to add 2.3 TW of capacity, equivalent to average yearly additions of 259 gigawatts (GW) in the next nine years.
This is below the actual installed capacity added in the past two years—in 2020 and 2021, despite the complications that resulted from the covid-19 pandemic and consequent supply chain disruptions, the world added almost 261 GW each year.
Furthermore, renewable power targeted by 2030 remains concentrated in a few regions globally.
Asia makes up half of the global targeted capacity, followed by Europe and North America.
In comparison, the Middle East and North Africa account for just three per cent of global deployment targets for 2030, despite the region’s high potential. And Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for just over two per cent of the total global for 2030.
The countries targeting the highest level of deployment are all part of the G20, making up almost 90 per cent of the global aggregated target. Although they make up a small share of past renewable deployment, aggregated targets by least developed countries (LDCs) and small island developing states (SIDS) would double their current renewable capacity.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Egypt: Ghana Is Committed To Increasing Share Of Renewable Energy—President Akufo-Addo
The President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has assured the global community of Ghana’s full commitment to increasing the country’s share of renewable energy in the energy mix.
Speaking at a High-Level Event on Sustainable Energy for All, organised by Bloomberg Philanthropies, on the sidelines of COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, President Akufo-Addo stated that “we will continue to increase the share of renewable energy in our electricity generation mix, as well as explore the options of hydrogen gas and other clean energy sources to meet our energy needs.”
According to President Akufo-Addo, “Energy transition has become a global responsibility for us all, especially given the impact of climate change, and the global energy crisis brought forth by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.”
With Ghana being a signatory to the Paris Agreement and other international conventions which require the country to reduce her carbon dioxide emission levels, he indicated that it has become imperative for Ghana to develop plans and strategies toward the creation of a net-zero energy sector, whilst aggressively pursuing the nation’s economic development.
“Our updated Nationally Determined Contributions, under the Paris Agreement, affirm the country’s resolve to address the impacts of climate change and build a resilient economy for our people,” he stressed.
President Akufo-Addo continued, “Ghana’s position on energy transition is to continue the responsible exploitation of our natural resources for our development and transition at our own pace. The Government of Ghana is mindful of the actions of the developed countries about the energy transition, and their effect on us.”
To this end, he told the gathering that it has, thus, become necessary for the Government of Ghana to develop an Energy Transition Framework that will guide the country as the entire world moves towards realizing net zero.
The President also said that the Government of Ghana, being mindful of the implications of such a framework and its implementation on the entire economy, directed the Committee to undertake extensive stakeholder consultations, in addition to expert input, to produce the National Energy Transition Framework to guide its transition to a net-zero economy by 2070 in a just and equitable manner, as well as minimise possible stranded assets and job losses in the oil and gas sector.
The total cost of the transition is estimated at five hundred and sixty-one billion dollars (US$561.8 billion), the President added.
Energy Transition
President Akufo-Addo also addressed the High-Level Meeting on ‘Just Energy Transition’, where he indicated that Ghana has developed a National Energy Transition Framework to provide the vision and guidance for Ghana’s energy transition.
In preparing this framework, the President stated that all existing policies were considered and the programmes that are being implemented towards achieving Ghana’s Nationally Determined Contributions.
“Wide stakeholder consultations were held to ensure that the energy transition issues in various parts of the country were captured and addressed in the framework. These included organised and non-organised labour, market women, academia, Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAS), Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), Development Partners (DPs) and the international community,” he said.
He explained that the Framework provides the optimal and sustainable pathway for fuel supply security, diversified energy mix and cost-efficient electricity generation, with an estimated generation tariff of fewer than 4.5 cents per kilowatt hour to accelerate the socio-economic development of Ghana.
“Ghana aims to achieve universal access by 2024. The Energy Transition Framework will meet the future electricity demand of 380 Terawatt-hours, with a corresponding installed capacity of 83 Giga-Watts. Ghana’s diversified energy mix will include 21 Gigawatts of renewable energy installed capacity, which will provide the opportunity to enjoy a greater share in the renewable energy carbon credit market,” he added.
President continued, “The transition will mitigate 200 million tons of carbon dioxide of Green House Gas emissions, minimising energy-related indoor air pollution and associated diseases. It is estimated that forty-eight thousand, two hundred and eighteen (48,218) premature deaths will be avoided annually due to the improvement in air quality, resulting from the impact of the transition.”
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
President Akufo-Addo continued, “Ghana’s position on energy transition is to continue the responsible exploitation of our natural resources for our development and transition at our own pace. The Government of Ghana is mindful of the actions of the developed countries about the energy transition, and their effect on us.”
To this end, he told the gathering that it has, thus, become necessary for the Government of Ghana to develop an Energy Transition Framework that will guide the country as the entire world moves towards realizing net zero.
The President also said that the Government of Ghana, being mindful of the implications of such a framework and its implementation on the entire economy, directed the Committee to undertake extensive stakeholder consultations, in addition to expert input, to produce the National Energy Transition Framework to guide its transition to a net-zero economy by 2070 in a just and equitable manner, as well as minimise possible stranded assets and job losses in the oil and gas sector.
The total cost of the transition is estimated at five hundred and sixty-one billion dollars (US$561.8 billion), the President added.
Energy Transition
President Akufo-Addo also addressed the High-Level Meeting on ‘Just Energy Transition’, where he indicated that Ghana has developed a National Energy Transition Framework to provide the vision and guidance for Ghana’s energy transition.
In preparing this framework, the President stated that all existing policies were considered and the programmes that are being implemented towards achieving Ghana’s Nationally Determined Contributions.
“Wide stakeholder consultations were held to ensure that the energy transition issues in various parts of the country were captured and addressed in the framework. These included organised and non-organised labour, market women, academia, Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAS), Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), Development Partners (DPs) and the international community,” he said.
He explained that the Framework provides the optimal and sustainable pathway for fuel supply security, diversified energy mix and cost-efficient electricity generation, with an estimated generation tariff of fewer than 4.5 cents per kilowatt hour to accelerate the socio-economic development of Ghana.
“Ghana aims to achieve universal access by 2024. The Energy Transition Framework will meet the future electricity demand of 380 Terawatt-hours, with a corresponding installed capacity of 83 Giga-Watts. Ghana’s diversified energy mix will include 21 Gigawatts of renewable energy installed capacity, which will provide the opportunity to enjoy a greater share in the renewable energy carbon credit market,” he added.
President continued, “The transition will mitigate 200 million tons of carbon dioxide of Green House Gas emissions, minimising energy-related indoor air pollution and associated diseases. It is estimated that forty-eight thousand, two hundred and eighteen (48,218) premature deaths will be avoided annually due to the improvement in air quality, resulting from the impact of the transition.”
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com Ghana: Eni Strikes More Oil In Aprokuma -1X Well Offshore Cape Three Points
Italian oil and gas major, Eni, has made an oil discovery at the Aprokuma-1X well at the Cape Three Points offshore Republic of Ghana, energynewsafrica.com can report.
The discovery was made at the Aprokuma-1X well located at the block 4.
It is not clear what the volume of the discovery is but further studies are being conducted to determine whether it merits appraisal or not
“They made a discovery in the Cape Three Points block 4 but are doing further studies to determine whether it merits appraisal or not,” a source told energynewsafrica.com.
Eni is an operator with 44.44 per cent of the permit for OCTP, which is governed by a concession agreement.
The block, which has reserves of about 40 billion m3 of non-associated gas and 500 million barrels of oil, is located about 60 kilometres off the coast of western Ghana.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Germany To Allocate $83 Billion For Energy Price Caps In 2023
The German government plans to spend as much as $82.8 billion (83.3 billion euros) on funding a planned cap on electricity and gas prices next year as it looks to help businesses and consumers who are coping with high energy costs, Reuters reported, citing a draft proposal it had seen.
The proposed financing for energy price caps would represent 42% of the planned $199 billion (200 billion euros) “defensive shield” to protect companies and consumers against the impact of soaring energy prices.
At the end of September, the German government said that it would ditch earlier plans for a gas levy on consumers and instead would introduce a gas price cap to curb soaring energy bills.
Last month, a panel of experts proposed measures to alleviate the impact of soaring energy prices on consumers, with steps including a one-off payment and subsidizing more than half of the expected gas consumption.
The experts recommended giving households and businesses a one-off payment worth a month of their respective gas bills and subsidizing between 60% and 80% of the expected gas consumption, while consumers will pay the rest at market prices.
The one-off payment is planned to be made in December, while the plan for the gas price cap was to be implemented in March or April 2023.
The commission will propose measures to blunt the impact of soaring energy prices on large industrial consumers at a later stage.
The expert gas commission in Germany has submitted a final proposal to the government, calling for a gas price cap at $0.12 (12 euro cents) per kilowatt hour to cover 80% of household gas consumption beginning in March and running until April 2024, Reuters reported last week.
The gas price cap is meant to aid households that are now dealing with gas prices that are over 2.5 times higher than this time last year as soaring energy prices risk industrial shutdowns and job losses in Europe’s biggest economy.
Source: Oilprice.com
Ghana: CEO Of Ghana Gas Appointed Chairman Of Society Of Petroleum Engineers
A renowned oil and gas infrastructure engineer and Chief Executive Officer of Ghana’s national gas company, Dr Benjamin K.D Asante, has been appointed Chairman of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), Ghana Chapter.
Society of Petroleum Engineers is the largest individual member organisation serving managers, engineers, scientists and other professionals in the global upstream segment of the oil and gas industry.
It has over 124,800 members in 134 countries across the world.
Dr. Asante will steer the affairs of the SPE Ghana Chapter for one year.
Commenting on the appointment, Dr. Ben K.D Asante said,” I’m ready to serve by working to ensure that the key focus of the organization in Ghana, which is closing the gap between industry and academia is achieved.’’
Profile of Dr Ben K.D Asante
Dr Ben K.D Asante is currently the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana National Gas Company (Ghana Gas).
He has over 25 years of global experience in the oil and gas industry.
He is one of the few African oil and gas engineers to have testified as an expert pipeline engineer before the US Supreme High Court.
He has also provided expert witness testimonies on gas custody transfer disputes in South America.
Dr Asante is a lecturer at the School of Engineering, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), and a former Engineering and Technical Director of Ghana’s premier Gas Infrastructure project, which birthed the Atuabo Gas Processing Plant and allied gas infrastructure in the Western Region, Ghana.
He is the mastermind of Ghana’s first Gas Master Plan in 2008.
He has also provided consulting, engineering services, project management and technical support for various projects throughout the world, including the World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB).
He has also worked in various technical and management roles for major Operating Companies and Engineering Consulting companies in Canada, including Nova/TransCanada; USA and Ghana.
He was adjudged the Best Worker for the Year for Excellence at the Global Energy Firm, Enron Corporation, in 2001.
Dr. Asante holds a BSc in Chemical Engineering from KNUST, Ghana, and MSc in Chemical Engineering from the University of Calgary, Canada.
He also obtained a PhD in Chemical Engineering from Imperial College, London/University of Calgary, where he later taught Gas Processing and Pipeline Engineering.
He has published 15 technical papers and made over 80 technical presentations within and outside North America on Oil/Gas Infrastructure Design and Operations.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
COP27: Opoku Prempeh Charges African Energy Ministers To Unite Against Attempt To Stop Oil & Gas Exploitation In Africa
Ghana’s Minister for Energy, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, has charged his colleague Ministers for Energy at this year’s United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Egypt to have a united voice and stand up against attempts by environmentalists pushing for Africa to abandon its gas and oil resources and instead shift to renewable energy sources.
“We should not allow ourselves to be divided,” Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh made the call during a panel discussion at the recent African Energy Week 2022 in Cape Town, South Africa.
According to Dr Opoku Prempeh, Africa is awash with huge minerals and oil and gas resources and, therefore, cannot abandon them while the majority of the youth are without jobs and struggling to survive.
Dr Opoku Prempeh stated categorically that Africa would continue to exploit its mineral resources to bring development and lift the majority of the people from poverty.
He warned that any attempt to abandon the continent’s huge mineral resources could trigger chaos.
“We are going to use what God has given us to develop our nations,” he said.
Using Ghana as an example, Dr Prempeh said millions of Ghanaians do not have jobs and “you want me to go and stand in front of them and say we’re not going to exploit our oil and gas? There will be a coup,” he stated.
According to him, it appears that some people deliberately want to set up African leaders for coup d’état.
“It was an existential threat for Africa to be told that don’t exploit your oil resources,” Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh pointed out.
Making a strong case for why oil and gas resources have to be exploited and not abandoned, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh said God in His wisdom created the sea, wind, and sun and put oil and gas resources under the earth for man’s exploitation.
Shooting down the argument and supporting the shift from the use of fossil fuels to renewable sources of energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh said if the answer to energy security was in, say, solar energy, God would not have put oil under the desert of Saudi Arabia because of the abundance of sun.
“If we are going to participate in the energy transition process, we are going to use what God has given us to achieve that,” he stated forcefully.
“Why did God put oil in Gabon. He put the trees and He put the oil. We have to exploit both. You can’t say you want to exploit one and leave the other. How are you going to exploit one without touching the other?” He quizzed.
COP27 is scheduled for November 7 and 18 in Egypt.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Ghana: Alex Mould Proposes Restructure To Limit OMCs, BDCs Operating Downstream
A former Chief Executive Officer of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Alex Kofi Mould, is advocating for a restructuring of Ghana’s petroleum downstream sector in a manner which will lead to a drastic reduction in the number of oil marketing companies and bulk oil distribution companies.
Data sourced from the NPA’s website indicates that as of August 2022, there were about 235 oil marketing companies and 48 bulk oil import distribution and export companies.
In the view of Mr Mould, the number of OMCs and BDCs operating in the downstream petroleum sector are too many, hence, the need to downsize them.
Suggesting what should be done to restructure the sector to address the current forex losses by OMCs and BDCs which is making some of the companies struggle to remain in business, Mr Mould said, “We need to limit the number of BDCs and OMCs operating via a volume-limit mechanism.”
Explaining what he meant by volume mechanism, he said the BDCs and OMCs should be given the number of volumes of oil they have to import or supply to the market.
He said any OMC that has had a licence for the last five years, but has not hit the agreed threshold of, for example, 200 million litres of fuel sales should be shut down or its licence not renewed.
Again, he said any BDC that does not meet the agreed threshold of, for example, 500 million litres within five years of receiving its licence should be shut down.
Per data available on the NPA’s website, only Goenergy Company Limited, Juwel Energy Ltd and Blue Ocean Investments Ltd supplied about 500 million litres of fuel.
For the companies that supplied between 250 million litres and 500 million litres, the data showed Marathon Oil Services Ltd, Dominion Int. Petroleum Ltd, Chase Pet. Ghana Ltd, Astra Oil Services Ltd, Fueltrade Ltd.
The remaining 48 BDCs supplied below 200 million litres.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Ghana: Stop Looking Elsewhere For Cheap Fuel And Revive TOR To Save Ghanaians…IES Tells Akufo-Addo
Energy Think Tank, Institute for Energy Security (IES) has charged President Akufo-Addo to look within Ghana to address the rising fuel prices instead of looking elsewhere for affordable and reliable sources of fuel to satisfy customers.
According to the IES, President Akufo-Addo’s intention to search for reliable and affordable fuel sources may be in vain at this time.
Instead, the IES believes President Akufo-Addo’s administration must do everything possible to ensure that the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) is revived to commence crude oil processing to save Ghanaians from the untold hardship as a result of the rising cost of fuel.
The IES described as shocking that the Energy Ministry is leading a group roaming the world for reliable and regular sources of affordable petroleum products for Ghanaians, abandoning its role to urgently bring TOR into an operational mode to provide that reliability to an uninterrupted supply of fuel for the country.
“The search for that heavily discounted fuel price from elsewhere is an unrealistic hope, and the team may return empty-handed unless the expectation/request is exchanged with something valuable to the would-be supplier.
“It beats one’s imagination how an oil-producing country with a refinery capacity of 45,000 barrels per stream day (bpsd), would have its top government officials abandon its domestic competitive advantage, and rather seek to import refined petroleum product elsewhere, in the name of reliability and affordability,” the IES said in a statement issued by Fritz Moses, Research Analyst.
The IES said the government’s sudden appetite for imported fuel to address reliability and cost-related issues can best be described as reactionary, morally indefensible, misplaced priority and a deliberate attempt to increase the fiscal burden of the Ghanaian economy.
It argued that “the state is better off prioritising local crude refining, instead of importation of refined products.
“Once more, the Institute for Energy Security (IES) wishes to appeal to the President to look within—bring back TOR in the shortest possible time, refine Ghana’s crude domestically, work to strengthen the local currency, and ensure an adequate amount of dollars is made available to importers of fuel.”
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Canada: OPG Applies For Construction Licence For Darlington SMR
Ontario Power Generation (OPG) has submitted an application for a Licence to construct a small modular reactor (SMR) at the Darlington site, where it plans to build Canada’s first commercial, grid-scale SMR.
This licence is required before any nuclear construction work on the SMR at Darlington can begin.
Site preparation work – which consists of non-nuclear infrastructure activities, such as clearing and grading parts of the site to build roads, utilities and support buildings, and for which the site is already licensed – began in October and is planned to continue into 2025.
The Licence to construct application, lodged with the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) on 31 October, was developed collaboratively between OPG and GE Hitachi, the designer of the BWRX-300. A number of information packages will be submitted to the CNSC in sequence, over the next six months.
According to the CNSC, a Licence to construct requires an applicant to demonstrate that the design of the proposed facility “conforms to regulatory requirements and will provide for safe operation over the proposed plant life, and responsibility for all activities pertaining to design, procurement, manufacturing, and construction and commissioning.”
The regulatory review process includes opportunities for Indigenous Nations and Communities and the public to discuss the application, ask questions and raise areas of interest, OPG said, culminating in a public hearing, held by the CNSC. This is likely to take place in 2024.
The Darlington site is the only site in Canada currently licensed for a new nuclear build, with an accepted environmental assessment and site preparation licence. OPG expects to make a construction decision by the end of 2024 and has set a preliminary target date of 2028 for plant operations.
The BWRX-300 is a 300 MWe water-cooled, natural circulation SMR with passive safety systems that leverages the design and licensing basis of GEH’s ESBWR boiling water reactor. It is currently undergoing a CNSC pre-licensing Vendor Design Review.
The Canada Infrastructure Bank recently committed CAD970 million (USD713 million) towards the Darlington New Nuclear Project in the bank’s largest investment in clean power to date, providing financial certainty and signalling federal support for the project.
Source :World Nuclear News
Glencore Energy UK Ordered To Pay $310M Fine Over Bribery Offences In Africa
Glencore Energy UK Limited, a subsidiary of Swiss mining and trading giant, has been ordered to pay a total penalty of 276.4 million pounds ($310.6m) by a London court for seven bribery offences in relation to its oil operations in Africa.
The Presiding Judge of the Southwark Crown Court, Peter Fraser ordered the company to pay a fine of £182.9m and also approved £93.5m ($105m) to be confiscated from the company.
The company paid $26m (£23m) through agents and employees to officials of crude oil firms in Nigeria, Cameroon and Ivory Coast between 2011 and 2016.
Prosecutors said Glencore Energy UK employees and agents used private jets to transfer cash to pay the bribes.
The judge said the offences to which Glencore had pleaded guilty represented “corporate corruption on a widespread scale, deploying very substantial sums of money in bribes.
“The corruption is of extended duration and took place across five separate countries in West Africa but had its origins in the West Africa oil trading desk of the defendant in London. It was endemic amongst traders on that particular desk,” he said.
On Wednesday, Britain’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) told the court that Glencore Energy UK Limited paid–or failed to prevent the payment of–millions of dollars in bribes to officials in the five African countries.
“The bribery was a process that went on for several years in Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Ivory Coast, Nigeria and South Sudan,” he said.
“Some of the more lurid details that have been heard over the last couple of days in the court were that Glencore paid middlemen to fly cash around Africa in private jets, taking them from country to country to bribe officials.”
Glencore, a Swiss-based multinational said in May, it expected to pay up to $1.5bn in relation to allegations of bribery and market manipulation in the United States, Brazil and the United Kingdom.
Clare Montgomery, representing Glencore, said: “The Company unreservedly regrets the harm caused by these offences and recognises the harm caused, both at national and public levels in the African states concerned, as well as the damage caused to others.”
Judge Fraser said in his sentencing remarks: “Glencore has engaged in corporate reform and today appears to be a very different corporation than it was at the time of these offences.”
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
South Africa: Safety Will Not Be Compromised If Koeberg Power Plant Lifespan Is Extended-De Ruyter
Eskom’s Group Chief Executive Andre de Ruyter says measures will be taken to ensure that safety is not compromised if the lifespan of the Koeberg Nuclear Power Station is extended for another 20 years.
De Ruyter, Eskom’s executive team and the new Board appeared before a joint meeting of Public Enterprises and Mineral Resources and Energy departments, to discuss the energy crisis in the country.
The discussions focused on the Koeberg Power Plant.
According to De Ruyter, it makes sense to extend the lifespan of Koeberg whose current operational lifespan will end in July 2024.
De Ruyter says they are working with the national nuclear regulator to apply for an extension.
In September, the power utility denied allegations that it is anti-nuclear power.
This was after concerns were raised to the power utility by the portfolio committees on Mineral Resources and Energy as well as Public Enterprises.
MPs raised concerns about the slow pace of maintenance at Koeberg and the impact on power supply.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Ghana: Gov’t Must Cushion Ghanaians Against Current Fuel Price Hikes—Minority Group
The Minority Group in Ghana’s Parliament is asking the Akufo-Addo administration to use part of the over GH¢8 billion revenue accrued from petroleum products to cushion petroleum consumers against the current price hikes.
According to the Minority, the government has received over GH¢8 billion from petroleum resources in less than three months, as against its GH¢6 billion projection for the year.
Speaking to journalists on Wednesday, November 2, 2022, the Ranking Member on the Mines and Energy Committee of Parliament, John Jinapor urged the government to act in halting the escalation of fuel prices which he bemoans has seen over 300 per cent increase in less than a year.
“In less than three months, the government has received over GH¢8 billion from our petroleum resources. So in three months, the government has received more than it projected for the whole year, so the government is making supernormal profits. Even the Price Stabilization and Recovery Levy, which is supposed to subsidise fuel, the government projected that in the first two quarters, it will receive GH¢269 million and as we speak, from the Ministry of Finance’s record, the government has received GH¢800 million. And so this notion that the government is not making any money is a fallacy.
“The government is making so much money from our petroleum resources. I, therefore, call on President Akufo-Addo and the outgoing Minister for Finance that they should do something about this pricing increment. They should sit up and think outside the box and apply these supernormal profits to cushion the ordinary Ghanaians.”
Mr Jinapor indicated that the economic crisis worsens by the day as he received calls every day from some of his constituents seeking diverse assistance to enable them to stay afloat.
“I receive calls every day from members in the Constituency from people who cannot even afford one square meal a day…people who cannot even send their kids to school because of the exorbitant fuel prices which are having a cascading effect on food prices and general cost of living.
“We hold the view that the government can do something about the fuel price increment. The government must sit up. The government must do something and the government must cushion the ordinary Ghanaians.”
The price of diesel shot up to GH¢23.49 per litre on Tuesday, according to the latest prices advertised by TotalEnergies at the pumps.
Petrol is selling at GH¢17.99 per litre, while Kerosene is selling at GH¢14.70.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Kenya: Power Supply Fully Restored In Areas Hit By Power Outage
Kenya Power has restored power supply to all the areas which were affected by system disturbances on Wednesday morning.
Parts of Nairobi, Coast and Mt Kenya regions experienced power cuts at about 11 am on Wednesday.
In a statement issued, Kenya Power attributed the power outage to system disturbances.
The company assured residents who were affected that it was working in collaboration with other players to restore the power supply as soon as possible.
In a later statement issued on Wednesday at about 8:58 pm Kenyan time, the power distribution company said, “We are glad to report that normal electricity supply has resumed in a ll areas following successful restoration of power generation plants that had earlier been affected by a system disturbance.”
“We thank all our customers for their patience,’’ the company said.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com Ghana: Subsidies On Residual Fuel Oil Was Creating Shortage–NPA
Ghana’s petroleum downstream regulator, National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has said it has become unsustainable to keep the subsidy on Residual Fuel Oil (RFO) because the subsidy on it was affecting its supply.
It, thus, explained the suspension of the subsidy on RFO was to ensure the regular supply of the product to the industry since the high price of fuel and the continuous depreciation of the cedi against the dollar have made it unsustainable to keep the subsidy on RFO.
Addressing a press conference in Accra on Wednesday, the Head of Economic Regulation of NPA, Mr. Abass Ibrahim Tasunti said the revenue the country was generating from the Price Stabilization and Recovery Levy had not been enough to pay for the subsidies accruing from RFO and premix fuel.
He stressed that as the prices of fuel and the exchange rate rise, subsidy levels also rise because the full costs of the products are not being passed to the consumer.
”The suppliers of this product (RFO) are refusing to supply because the subsidies are not being paid on time. And because the subsidies are not being paid on time, the companies have refused to supply the product. They sell and they are not recovering the full cost, and they are also not getting the subsidies paid to them,” he said.
The government paid GHc136 million as a subsidy on RFO in 2021 and again paid GHc52 million out of the total subsidy of GHc154 million for the period January to September 2022, leaving a balance of GHC102 million.
Mr. Tasunti said the manufacturing industry had suffered to access RFO to power their machines, leading to the closedown of some factories.
He said the NPA had engaged players in the manufacturing sector on the challenge in the supply of RFO and the resolution was that in the meantime, the subsidy on RFO should be removed so that they could pay the full cost to ensure regular supply of the product and get their factories running.
‘The industry prefers to pay the full cost of RFO so they can continue running their factories than not to have their products at all,” Mr Tasunti said.
He said the alternative product that the manufacturing industry could use was diesel, but the cost of the product was very high now.
When the Price Regulation Policy was introduced in July 2015, the government decided to keep subsidies on RFO and premix fuel.
And to ensure that these subsidies are funded, the Energy Sector Levies Act introduced a levy called the Price Stabilization and Recovery Levy to pay for subsidies on RFO and premix.
Mr. Tasunti said the revenue that would be generated from the Price Stabilization and Recovery Levy would be focused on only premix fuel for now while the subsidy on RFO would be taken off until things change.
However, the government, through the NPA, has suspended the subsidy on Residual Fuel Oil (RFO)—the fuel used by the manufacturing sector—effective November 1, 2022.
The Authority has, however, maintained the subsidy on premix fuel to continue to cushion the fisher folk.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com