The nominee for Deputy Minister for Energy position, Andrew Kofi Egyapa Mercer, is expected to appear before the Appointment Committee of Ghana’s Parliament to be vetted by the committee today ( Monday, June 7, 2021).
The nominee, a lawyer by profession, is the incumbent Member of Parliament for Secondi Constituency in the Western Region.
Energynewsafrica.com’s sources within the country’s Energy Ministry indicate that if the nominee goes through the vetting successfully and is approved, he will be in charge as Deputy Energy Minister responsible for Petroleum while Dr Mohammed Amin will be responsible for Power.
Profile
Andrew Kofi Egyapa Mercer, born on 25th May, 1973, is a lawyer and politician. He is a member of the New Patriotic Party and the incumbent Member of Parliament for the Sekondi Constituency in the Western Region of Ghana.
He succeeded Papa Owusu-Ankomah who had been MP for 20 years.
He attended Chapel Hill Preparatory School in Takoradi for his primary education.
He proceeded to the Adisadel College in Cape Coast where he obtained both his GCE Ordinary level and GCE Advanced level certificates.
He gained entrance into the University of Ghana, graduating with Honours in Bachelor of Arts in Humanities and Bachelor of Laws.
He studied at the Ghana School of Law and qualified as a lawyer in Ghana after passing his bar examination.
He joined First Atlantic Bank in Accra in 2007 as an Assistant Manager and advanced to become the head of the legal department.
Whilst at First Atlantic, he contested and lost the 2011 Parliamentary primaries of the New Patriotic Party in Sekondi to the incumbent Papa Owusu-Ankomah.
He resigned in 2013 to set up Mercer and Company, a corporate and investment law firm based in Accra.
Souce:www.energynewsafrica.com
OPEC, in collaboration with the African Energy Commission (AFREC), the African Petroleum Producers’ Organization (APPO) and African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA), joined efforts during the inaugural OPEC-Africa Energy Dialogue to promote continent-wide energy cooperation initiatives.
The High-Level meeting culminates more than two years of work to expand dialogue, technical cooperation and enhanced research on the continent’s promising energy future. The videoconference built upon previous technical meetings with AFREC and APPO.
In his opening remarks at the ground-breaking event, OPEC Secretary General, Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, noted that OPEC has a long history of prioritizing cooperation through dialogues with a number of oil-producing and consuming countries, as well as with international organizations and global corporations.
“These events have proven to be highly effective in promoting mutual understanding on key energy issues, while also enhancing our common efforts as energy stakeholders to tackle industry challenges, such as the current COVID-19
pandemic,” the Secretary General said.
In addition to the OPEC Secretary General, speakers at the inaugural event were Rashid Ali Abdallah, Executive Director of AFREC; Dr Omar Farouk Ibrahim, Secretary General of APPO; and Anibor Kragha, Executive Secretary of ARDA.
In his remarks, Mr Rashid Ali Abdallah of AFREC stressed that to maximise local added value of the whole oil chain in Africa, “we should explore the relevance of investment in refining facilities and increase cross-boarder trading, especially through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). These dialogues are therefore key to strengthening our relations, help facilitate the mobilisation of Africa’s own energy resources and potentials, continue to bring energy to the top of national and regional agendas, whilst taking approaches that put Africa directly on to innovative and low carbon energy development pathways.”
In his keynote address, Dr Omar Farouk Ibrahim of APPO expressed the need “to join efforts to tackle the daunting challenges facing the global energy sector, and particularly Africa, which informed the decision of the APPO Ministerial Council to conduct a ‘Study on the Future of the Oil and Gas Industry in Africa’ in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and COP21.” The APPO Executive Director also stressed the necessity to undertake cross-border and regional energy projects in the context of energy transition.
Mr Anibor Kragha of ARDA noted that the “First OPEC-Africa Energy Dialogue was very timely, especially in harnessing Africa’s contributions to the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in November. Our positive deliberations on promoting sustainable investments across Africa’s oil and gas industry, developing a robust energy transition roadmap and securing the required funding to execute crucial regional projects will usher in a new era of prosperity for the continent.” He added: “ARDA, along with AFREC and APPO, is fully committed to this laudable OPEC initiative and that it will ultimately ensure that Africa’s full energy potential is realized and our citizens’ future energy demands are met with cleaner petroleum products, especially low-sulphur fuels and LPG for clean cooking in the near-term.”
The objective of the dialogue is to bring together top energy policymakers from various energy institutions to provide support and policy guidance to the technical meetings of the energy dialogue, aimed at enhancing cooperation and collaboration in energy data acquisition and joint studies, with a view to optimize their limited resources in pursuit of wider objectives. In particular, the mutual goals of the organizations are based extensively on energy access and energy poverty alleviation in Africa.
The OPEC-Africa Energy Dialogue will provide critical input for identifying enablers for investment in the African energy sector, accessibility and affordability of energy to eradicate energy poverty, and discuss the future of oil and energy in the post-COVID-19 recovery and energy transition for Africa.
The African continent is set to become increasingly important in terms of global energy demand and supply. African countries are projected to provide the largest share of world population growth in the long term and the continent will experience a significant expansion in urbanization levels. These underlying demographics, coupled with a growing economy and rising income levels, will drive an increase in energy demand.
Key points highlighted during the first High-Level OPEC-Africa Energy Dialogue included:
• Energy poverty remains a major challenge that requires expanded cooperation to achieve solutions;
• All sources of energy are needed to meet anticipated energy demand as well as expand energy access;
• Expanded cross-border energy trade and connections could strengthen energy access and reliability;
• A sustainable finance plan for African energy sector is very important;
• Enhanced continental cooperation on data collection and sharing is needed to support energy planning and stability;
• A harmonized African energy transition plan is needed to prepare for the COP26 meetings in Glasgow, scheduled for 1-12 November 2021;
• There is a need for additional dialogue and stronger advocacy to support the strategic energy interests of Africa.
The meeting was also attended by delegates from some OPEC Member Countries and non-OPEC oil-producing countries participating in the Declaration of Cooperation.
In closing the videoconference, the OPEC Secretary General said: “Africa will continue to be an integral and essential player in the oil and gas industry’s long-term efforts to meet the rising energy needs of the world’s rapidly growing population.
“As energy stakeholders,” he said, “we must continue to dialogue and collaborate at all levels to achieve our common goals. In this regard, I invite all of our fellow African energy producers to join with us as we will only get stronger with the enhanced support and cooperation of our continental partners.
Enlit Africa digital event kicks off with a Siemens sponsored keynote address that addressed this year’s content theme, the 5Ds of the energy transition. Day one will be all about the strategic and financial strategies Africa needs to use to make the energy transition a reality for all.
Sessions throughout the three-day Enlit Africa digital event will touch on all, one or a combination of the 5Ds identified as key to Africa’s transition to green, sustainable energy systems.
Decarbonisation, digitalisation, democratisation, deregulation and decentralisation and how these strategies affect all who work in the energy sector will be unpacked, discussed and debated across all sessions.
A panel discussion featuring speakers from the International Energy Agency, the Association of Power Utilities of Africa and Siemens will delve specifically into Tackling the 5Ds of the energy transition – a global initiative… with a local flavour.
The discussion on Accelerating South Africa’s energy transition with gas power and renewables will delve into the country-specific, nitty-gritty of what it will take to transition away from fossil fuels. GE will launch their gas power whitepaper during this session, highlighting how the strategic deployment of gas power and renewables is critical to creating sustainable energy access at the same time as reducing carbon emissions. The whitepaper also discusses the role gas can play in South Africa’s coal plant repurposing programme.
All players in the energy field, from utility to power developer will tell you the financing of any project is key to getting it started, never mind bringing it to fruition. To that end Financing the Africa energy transition will be unpacked in a panel discussion featuring speakers from the World Bank, Shell Foundation and Eskom, among others.
Keep an eye out for an interview about Burundi’s first successful solar IPP project as well as the discussion on the role of biogas for commercial operations.
https://www.clarion-events-group.com/enlit-africa-registration-energy-news-africa
Engineering consultancy ESB International will bring to bear some of the strategic lessons they have learned in their home base of Ireland in a session on Preparing your utility transformation roadmap, which will be of use to utilities and energy planners in governments throughout Africa.
At the same time the training session, Design Principles of Utility-Connected PV systems will look at the technical side of concepts of good design and how they are applied in practice when utilities deal with the largest and fastest-growing market sector in power today.
Connect. Engage. Evolve.
Enlit Africa, formerly African Utility Week and POWERGEN Africa, invites you to learn, connect and engage with industry leaders and Africa’s power and energy community across our three-day, not-to-be-missed digital event on 8 – 10 June 2021. Register for your front-row seat to highly topical, free CPD accredited webinars, roundtables, tech showcases and the world’s leading suppliers presenting their latest solutions and so much more.
As the Senegalese Government aims to increase its share of renewable energy to 30%, ENGIE, Merdiam and the Sovereign Fund for Strategic Investments of Senegal (FONSIS) have announced the commissioning of two solar photovoltaic power plants, with a combined generation capacity of 60 MW.
Located in the central regions of Kaolack and Diourbel, respectively, the 35-MW Kahone Solaire SA and 25-MW Kaél Solaire SA plants represent the first electricity generation projects by private operators to have been the subject of a call for tenders in Senegal.
As part of the Scaling Solar program currently being implemented in the country by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Government of Senegal, the two plants support a clean energy transition by supplying 540,000 Senegalese with renewable power, creating more than 400 direct and indirect local jobs, and reducing carbon emissions by 89,000 tons per year.
“The Senegalese Government has set itself a target of 30% renewable energy in the electricity mix by 2025. We are pleased to be able to contribute, with the Kahone and Kaél photovoltaic plants, to the provision of clean and sustainable energy to the population. We also welcome the excellent collaboration between the various parties involved,” said Philippe Miquel, CEO North Africa at ENGIE.
“Scaling Solar is the embodiment of the cooperation between FONSIS and several private sector players including ENGIE, Meridiam, the IFC, Proparco and the European Investment Bank,” said Papa Demba Diallo, Director General of FONSIS. “We are delighted with this collaboration, which allows our country to achieve several objectives of the ‘Energy Component’ within the Plan for an Emerging Senegal – in particular, the diversification of the energy mix, the development of clean energy allowing a reduction of pollution, in line with the conclusions of the Paris Climate Accord, but also the strengthening of universal access to sustainable and affordable energy.”
Within five years, it is estimated that Engie, Meridiam and FONSIS will collectively operate 120 MW of installed power generation capacity in Senegal, representing more than half of the country’s total solar capacity.
The Kaél and Kahone concessions will be operated over a period of 25 years by a company owned by ENGIE (40%), Meridiam (40%) and FONSIS (20%).
Africa’s largest oil producers do not plan to abandon oil and gas exploration and production and could consider creating a continent-wide bank to fund new projects when international banks refuse to finance new developments.
Nigeria, an OPEC member and the largest oil producer in Africa, hosted this week a round table on local content in oil and gas projects, attended by Nigeria’s Oil Minister Timipre Sylva, the Secretary-General of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organization (APPO), Omar Ibrahim, and representatives of other African producers where oil and gas is an important part of the gross domestic product (GDP). The nations present included Angola, Algeria, Egypt, Gabon, Cameroon, and Niger.
“While over 15 African nations are producing and exporting crude oil, a sad reality is that our people have not benefited maximally from this natural resource,” Nigeria’s minister Sylva said, as carried by local outlet This Day.
Raising the share of local content in oilfield services and the industry’s supply chain is one of the ways to cope with the growing reluctance for funding oil and gas projects and the environmental backlash against fossil fuels, according to Sylva.
Simbi Wabote, Executive Secretary at the Nigerian Content Development Monitoring Board (NCDMB), said that Africa may need to set up a continental bank to fund oil and gas projects now that major international banks are reviewing their exposure and commitments to fossil fuels.
“Financial institutions and IOCs, even educational research institutions, that are centres of innovation for the industry are closing their petroleum faculties in order to be seen to be in conformity with the global paradigm shift,” This Day quoted the secretary general of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organization, Ibrahim, as saying.
“With over 100 billion barrels of oil still in our ground, most economies are still heavily dependent on oil revenue. Is Africa ready to forgo the production of those 100 billion barrels and classify them as wasted assets?’’ Ibrahim added.
Source:Oilprice.com
Ghana’s Minister for Energy, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh says it is not enough for European nations and promoters of clean and green energy to ask African nations to move in the direction of clean and green energy without giving the necessary financial support for them to do so.
“If, now, we in Africa are being told to move in the direction of economic progress through green and clean energy, then, those who are speaking like that should provide the needed capital and partnerships to make it possible.
“If we have coal in abundance in Africa, but can’t use it in our power sector and we are being told to use clean reliable energy, then, those who are professing that should come to the table with the needed investments and partnerships for Africa to move in that direction,” he said.
The Minister expressed these concerns when he spoke at the German-Africa Energy Forum held in Hamburg, Germany.
Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, who was speaking along with Nigeria’s Minister for Power, Eng. Sale Mamman, noted that Africa is endowed with both conventional and renewable sources which, if properly harnessed, would help to sustainably meet the energy demand while responding to climate change agenda.
According to him, Ghana is committed to ensuring reliable and cost effective energy delivery to all sectors of the Ghanaian economy.
He told the forum that in 2020, Ghana amended its Renewable Energy Act 2011(832) to respond to emerging trends in the renewable energy market.
“Through this amendment, we have empowered the generators and manufacturers to ensure renewable energy is part of their energy production and utilisation.”
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
Energynewsafrica.com can authoritatively report that the Government of Ghana’s refusal to implement VAT exemption granted in the Deepwater Cape Three Points (DWCTP) oil block Petroleum Agreement is the topmost issue which has triggered the America’s oil and gas super major, ExxonMobil decision to abandon their exploration activities in the West African nation.
Reliable sources within the country’s energy sector indicated that the US super major has paid about US$4.2 million in VAT despite the company being exempted from paying VAT as per the Petroleum Agreement.
Article 12.8 of the DWCTP Petroleum Agreement (PA) specifically provides that “Contractor, its affiliates and sub-contractors shall not be liable to pay VAT in respect of plant, equipment and materials and related services supplied in Ghana, to be used solely and exclusively in the conduct of Petroleum Operations under this Agreement”.
Article 12.16 further provides that “Contractor shall be exempted from any upfront payment and /or refund requirement on any exempt taxes, duties, fees and other imports of any kind”.
Letters written by Deloitte & Touche, external consultant of ExxonMobil and sighted by energynewsafrica.com expressed the frustrations of ExxonMobil.
For almost two years, ExxonMobil has been pursuing the Government of Ghana to address their concern but all to no avail.
“We wish to follow up on this request as our client has not received any feedback from your office to date. Our client is currently compelled to make payment for VAT on supplier invoices which is an adverse cash flow impact on its operations considering that the company is clearly exempted from upfront payment of VAT in accordance with Article 12.16 of its Petroleum Agreement ratified by Parliament.
“We look forward to your prompt response and issuance of VAT Relief Purchase booklet to our client,” a portion of the letter written by Deloitte Touche read.More to come…
Nuclear Power Ghana, the entity spearheading the construction of Ghana’s first nuclear power plant, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) to widen information reach and knowledge sharing on nuclear power.
The MoU will help advance Ghana’s efforts at including nuclear power generation as an alternative baseload in the power generation mix.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, in Accra, capital of Ghana, Dr Stephen Yamoah, who is the Executive Director of Nuclear Power Ghana, said his outfit was fully aware of the contributions and impact of stakeholders, especially the media, on the country’s nuclear power programme, and described the MoU as another proud and memorable milestone in the history of the NPG.
He said one of the key recommendations of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to countries seeking to develop or expand their nuclear power programmes was to ensure firm social licence sustenance.
Thus, the NPG was keen on establishing a steady and well-bonded relationship with its stakeholders through the media to reach all corners of the country for effective involvement and engagement.
Dr Yamoah said a strong stakeholder involvement, as expressed in the 19 infrastructural issues of the Milestone’s Approaches, had been a ‘showstopper’ for some countries that had invested billions of dollars to build the plant, like Austria, and that Ghana would not want to get it wrong.
He mentioned some activities of the NPG for 2021 as the launch of the Annual NPG Tertiary Debate on Nuclear Energy and support for GNA’s Energy Desk to promote excellent reportage on nuclear power and related energy issues.
Dr Yamoah commended the Agency for maintaining its footprints in the media landscape since Ghana’s independence and remaining very relevant by expanding its services, drawing interest of all.
He expressed the hope that a sustained healthy collaboration with GNA would contribute to a considerable appreciation and acceptance of NPG’s project.
On his part, the General Manager of Ghana News Agency, Mr Kofi Owusu said the partnership formed part of the quest to fulfill the Agency’s mandate of disseminating authentic and reliable news and information on Ghana’s development, its challenges, and successes to fully inform both domestic and international audiences.
Dr Stephen Yamoah, Executive Director of NPG signing the MOU
He said the GNA was the only national newswire service with the widest network and coverage, and was present and active in every region and most of the districts.
It continued to play a significant role in the development of the media industry in Ghana with a subscriber base comprising major media companies, cutting across print, electronic and internet-based platforms, he said.
Mr Kofi Owusu assured that the GNA stood ready to deploy its hardworking journalists to task to ensure that the nuclear agenda got to every nook and cranny of the country.
Kofi Owusu, General Manager of GNA signing the MOU
He spoke about the Agency’s current innovative move including the digitalisation to ensure the development of a news portal to eliminate laborious bulk messaging and speed up the news process, and repackaging of news for select groups to grow young audiences.
He said the Energy Desk would ensure a comprehensive coverage of issues in nuclear energy and Ghana’s energy sector at large.
Prof Benjamin Jabez B. Nyarko, the Director-General of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, said the cooperation should help demystify nuclear power and make the populace embrace its inherent benefits.
Mr Fred Oware, the Board Chairman of the NPG, unveiled the GNA Energy Desk and urged the Agency to work towards a mutually beneficial collaboration.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) will effective July start enforcing compensation to electricity consumers who are under-supplied of power to their homes and businesses by the DISCOs.
This follows several complaints by energy consumers that the Service-Based Tariff (SBT), which has led to a huge increase in electricity bills paid by customers, only places obligations on them without appropriate sanctions for Distribution Companies (DISCOs) that under-supply.
This was made known by the Deputy General Manager, Markets Competition and Rates, NERC, Mr Abba Terab, at the 58th Session of the Power Dialogue organised by the Electricity Hub, who said that for now, compensation will be based on a 60-day cycle.
Under the policy, customers are to pay for electricity in correlation with the level of service they get and how long they receive power daily. Therefore, it will be based on a minimum average hour of power supply and other metrics.
Consumers are divided into five bands, A–E, where band A is for customers who get 20 hours of power and above daily; B is for customers who get power for 16 hours daily and C covers customers who enjoy power for 12 hours and above a day.
Band D is for those that enjoy power for 8 hours and above, while band E is for customers who only get four hours and above but below 8 hours of power supply daily.
Mr Terab, in his statement, said, “If I am in band A, I should get band A service and when I am paying for band A service and I don’t get band A service, but I get band B service, I should be compensated accordingly. That’s the position of the commission and it has been made very clear to all operators within the industry.
“We believe that by the time we carry out the minor review, this will be done. When the automation of the meters is done, compensation will be on a monthly basis. If over a period of six months a customer does not get minimum service, he will get a refund on a monthly basis for the energy.”
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
The Pew Research Center has released a new poll which found that nearly two-thirds of the U.S. public opposes phasing out fossil fuels as a means of addressing climate change.
In the poll, nearly two-thirds of Americans (64%) say the U.S. should use a mix of energy sources going forward – including oil, coal and natural gas, along with renewables. Only about a third (33%) of Americans support phasing out fossil fuels entirely.
“Even as Americans identify a number of pressing national problems, majorities see an array of actors, from government to business, as doing too little to reduce the effects of climate change and are broadly supportive of a range of policy approaches that would help address climate change, including moving toward renewable energy sources, developing infrastructure for electric vehicles, and increasing taxes and restrictions on carbon emissions,” the Pew Research Center stated in its report.
“Still, most Americans favor using a mix of energy sources to meet the country’s needs – including renewables as well as oil, coal and natural gas. There is limited support for phasing out the use of fossil fuels altogether.”
Other findings in the poll include:
• A majority (60%) of Americans say that increasing job and economic growth is a very important consideration to them personally when it comes to proposals to reduce the effects of climate change.
• As Americans think about proposals to address climate change, Black (68%) and Hispanic adults (55%) stand out for the high shares who say it is very important to them that such proposals help lower-income communities.
BP, British multination oil and gas company has reached an agreement to purchase 9GW of solar development projects in the US from independent US solar developer 7X Energy.
The acquisition represents a significant step towards BP’s target of growing its net developed renewable generating capacity to 20GW by 2025 and aim to increase this to 50GW by 2030.
The deal will also grow BP’s renewables pipeline from 14GW to 23GW. The assets will be developed through BP’s 50-50 solar joint venture Lightsource BP, a global leader in solar energy, applying Lightsource BP’s capabilities to accelerate BP’s renewables targets.
BP will pay 7X Energy $220 million for the projects and 1GW of “safe harbour” equipment and expects the acquisition to complete in 30 days. The projects are expected to meet BP’s disciplined low carbon investment criteria, generating returns of at least 8-10%.
Dev Sanyal, BP executive vice president of gas and low carbon energy, said: “With this purchase, we are continuing to put our strategy in action as we grow our renewables business in a deliberate and disciplined way. It brings us 9GW of high-quality solar projects in markets where we can create integrated renewable energy offers through our trading and customer franchises.
“We will bring the industry-leading expertise of Lightsource bp together with the breadth of BP’s integration capabilities in the US to develop this portfolio of projects. This is a significant step as we continue to deliver on our net zero ambition.”
Dave Lawler, BP America chairman and president, said: “BP’s new high-quality solar portfolio will provide low carbon energy, create US jobs and deliver the competitive returns our shareholders expect.
“In line with our strategy, we’ll aim to integrate these projects with our existing onshore and offshore wind, natural gas, and trading and shipping businesses to give customers what they want – reliable, affordable and clean energy.”
Solar energy is the fastest growing power source in the US and is expected to quadruple over the next 10 years. It currently accounts for more than 40% of all new electricity generating capacity added in the US.
The projects are spread across 12 US states, with the largest portfolios in Texas (ERCOT) and the Midwest (PJM).
Assets with a combined generating capacity of 2.2GW are expected to reach final investment decision (FID) by 2025, with the remaining progressing by 2030. Once developed, these projects will have the capacity to generate enough clean energy to power around 1.7 million US homes. The development is also expected to support thousands of jobs through construction.
As an integrated energy company, BP is able to combine its trading, mobility and customer expertise with Lightsource bp’s world-class solar project development experience and execution capabilities.
Nick Boyle, group chief executive officer of Lightsource BP, added: “This transaction speaks volumes about the success of our JV with BP, and how we leverage each other’s strengths to realize our ambitions for solar and a low-carbon future. It also positions Lightsource BP as a growing force in the US solar market, as we expand our portfolio across the United States.”
BP is America’s largest energy investor since 2005, investing more than $125 billion in the economy and supporting more than 125,000 additional jobs through its business activities.
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
Norway’s Equinor and U.S. supermajor ExxonMobil have reached the final investment decision to develop the Bacalhau oilfield in Brazil’s prolific pre-salt area with a US$8-billion investment in phase one, the Norwegian major said on Tuesday.
Equinor and Exxon hold 40 percent each in the Bacalhau oilfield, with Equinor as operator.
The field was discovered by Brazilian state oil giant Petrobras in 2012, while Equinor has been operator since 2016.
Under the development plan, Phase 1 will see 19 subsea wells tied back to a floating production, storage and offloading unit (FPSO) located at the field.
This will be one of the largest FPSOs in Brazil, with a production capacity of 220,000 barrels per day (bpd) and two million barrels in storage capacity, Equinor said.
First oil from the Bacalhau oilfield is planned for 2024.
The partners in the field, which also include Petrogal Brasil and Pré-sal Petróleo SA (PPSA), have already awarded the main Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) and engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) contracts.
“Bacalhau is a globally competitive project with a break even below USD 35 in a key energy region. Estimated recoverable reserves for the first phase are more than one billion barrels of oil,” Arne Sigve Nylund, Equinor’s executive vice president for Projects, Drilling and Procurement, said in a statement.
“The development of the Bacalhau field is a strategic investment in our global portfolio and has the potential to bring high returns for ExxonMobil, our partners and the Brazilian people,” said Juan Lessmann, Lead Country Manager for ExxonMobil in Brazil.
The sanctioning of the US$8-billion field development by major international oil companies is one of the first such announcements since the International Energy Agency (IEA) said two weeks ago that beyond projects already committed as of 2021, there is no need for new oil and gas fields approved for development if the world hopes to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.
Source: Oilprice.com
Elecnor SA, the contractor in charge of the engineering, procurement and construction of the 330kV/34.5kV Bulk Supply Point at Pokuase, in the Republic of Ghana, has successfully completed its work and is expected to hand it over to the beneficiaries of the project, namely GRIDCO and ECG for the official commissioning and operation.
The project which started in April 2019 was to be completed in May 2021.
The US$60 million project, which is the first Bulk Supply Point under the Ghana Power Compact II, funded by the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) and spearheaded by the Millennium Development Authority, includes two fully equipped Control Buildings for the Ghana Grid Company, GRIDCo, as well as the Electricity Company of Ghana, ECG, and four 145MVA Power Transformers.
It is the largest Bulk Supply Point in the West African nation.
The project would boost power supply to about 350,000 in Accra, especially those in Pokuase, Nsawam, Kwabenya, Legon, Oyibi, Adenta and other surrounding communities.
Ghana’s leading power transmission company, GRIDCo recently curtailed power supply to parts of Ghana’s capital, Accra, to allow for tie-in to be done.
Checks by energynewsafrica.com, indicates that power supply to Pokuase, Kwabenya and other surrounding communities has significantly improved since the completion of the tie-in exercise.
The project is expected to be officially commissioned in the next couple of months.
Minister for Energy Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh and some officials of the Ministries of Energy, and Information at the site recentlySource: www.energynewsafrica.com
South Africa’s Minister for Mineral Regards and Energy, Gwede Mantashe is expected to deliver a keynote address at this year’s Enlit Africa, formerly known as Africa Utility Week digital event scheduled between 8 -10 June 2021.
He will be speaking along with Professor Malegapuru Makgoba, Chairman of the Board of Eskom, South Africa’s power utility company.
This year’s digital event focuses on 5Ds of energy transition.
Other expert speakers for the event include Ashish Khanna, Practice Manager, West and Central Africa, World Bank, USA, Chanda Nxumalo, Managing Director, Harmattan Renewables, South Africa, David Riposo, Energy Access Officer, Power Africa, USA, and Julian Leslie, Chief Engineer, National Grid ESO, United Kingdom.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
