Ghana: Gas Tanker Drivers Accuse Police Officers At Biriwa, Nchaban Barrier Of Extortion
Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) tanker drivers, who lift LPG from the Takoradi Harbour in the Western Region of the Republic of Ghana, are accusing police personnel at the Biriwa and Nchaban police barriers in the Central and Western Regions of extortion.
This development, they explained is causing them pain and stress.
According to the drivers, the police officers at the barriers are supposed to only check their road worthy certificate, income tax stickers and waybill covering the products.
However, they alleged that the police officers now demand Unified Petroleum Price Fund (UPPF) receipt which they explained are only needed when they are transporting products to the northern part of the country.
The drivers alleged that when they fail to produce the UPPF receipt, the officers would detain their truck and demand between GHc200 and GHc500 before they would be released.
On Saturday, July 11, 2020, two fully loaded LPG tankers with registration numbers GN-2706-12 and GN-1228-16 driven by Ganiyu Yussif and Eric Martey from Takoradi and on their way to Accra were stopped at the Biriwa Police Barrier and detained.
Ganiyu Yusif told energynewsafrica.com that he and his colleague were asked to cough GHc 1000 each before they would be released.
It took the intervention of Shafiu Mohammed, who is the Chairman of the Gas Tanker Drivers Union, to call a senior police officer to order the officers to release the trucks.
Mr Shafiu told energynewsafrica.com that they are not happy about the frustration their members have been going through in the hands of the police officers at the Biriwa and Nchaban barriers and would, therefore, stop conveying LPG from the Takoradi Harbour and Atuabo Gas for consumers in Accra and other cities.
He explained that the police are not to inspect the UPPF receipt.
In his view, the only way their members could save themselves from the embarrassment is to stop going to Western Region for LPG.
Speaking to energynewsafrica.com, Samuel Asare -Bediako, who is the Coordinator of the Unified Petroleum Price Fund at the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), however, disputed the claims by the drivers that the police officers are not supposed to inspect the UPPF receipt.
He explained that previously, the UPPF receipt was generated manually and due to the volume of work at that time, it was restricted to only Bulk Road Vehicles consigned to Tamale, Bolga, etc.
He said the UPPF document is now electronically generated, adding it has been extended to cover every part of Ghana.
The UPPF document shows the destination of the product. Additionally, when the product gets to its designated destination, officials of Bureau of National Investigation (BNI) attest by appending their signatures to prove that the product has reached its destination.
Mr Asare-Bediako told energynewsafrica.com that his outfit had been notified of the extortion by the police and promised to follow up.
He, however, urged the Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) to do well to generate the UPPF document for the drivers to avoid the frustration they have been going through.
When contacted, the Central Regional Police Commander, DCOP Paul Manly Awuni, who was not aware of the development, assured the tanker drivers of commissioning an investigation into the allegation of extortion.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Mozambique: Sasol Relinquishes Blocks 16 & 19 License
Sasol has announced its decision to relinquish its exploration license in Blocks 16 & 19 offshore Mozambique.
This follow an evaluation of the exploration potential of the blocks and an assessment of the report of the pre-feasibility phase of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).
The integrated chemicals and energy company which operates in 31 countries was awarded Blocks 16 & 19 in June 2005.
According to the company, it conducted deep-water exploration activities in the license areas in a safe and environmentally responsible manner.
“With the relinquishment of the deep-water part of the license on 1 July 2013, the shallow water area of the license was retained with a view to define a future work programme to assess the remaining hydrocarbon potential,” the company said in a press statement.
South Africa: Sasol Invests In Chemical And Energy Portfolios Instead Of Oil“Sasol undertook a robust and transparent pre-feasibility assessment through Golder & Associates, an independent, reputable environmental specialist consulting firm, prior to any exploration activity,” it added. This process-involved consultation with all relevant stakeholders, from government, on all levels, industry, such as tourism and fisheries, to academia. Sasol acknowledges all the comments received during the pre-feasibility phase of the EIA process and values the input that all stakeholders contributed. “Sasol will relinquish Blocks 16 & 19 in their entirety to the Government of Mozambique. A withdrawal notification has been issued to the relevant Mozambican authorities,” it concluded. Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Cairn Oil & Gas Lays Off 300 Workers
Cairn Oil & Gas has trimmed its workforce by 300 workers in a redundancy exercise as low oil prices hit India’s largest private oil producer.
This has brought down Cairn’s employees count to 1,400 from 1,700, according to sources.
“Cairn Oil & Gas, Vedanta Ltd follows a robust performance management system and made the humane choice of delaying appraisal cycles and related exits due to the untenable situation caused by the pandemic. The recent exits are a result of organic career progression, voluntary movements, job rotations within the conglomerate, natural exits on account of annual appraisals, retirement and non-renewal of contracts,” Cairn said in response to Economic Times query.
“We will continue with our recruitment process to ensure growth and business continuity.”
India: Gov’t Plans To Privatise Electricity Distribution CompaniesCairn’s CEO Ajay Dixit left the company at the end of May after his employment contract expired. Cairn, which contributes about a quarter of India’s oil output, is facing a double whammy of declining production and a slump in oil prices. Its oil and gas production fell 14 per cent year-on-year in the fourth quarter as it struggles with ageing fields. Oil and gas revenue fell 24 per cent year-on-year during the quarter. A dramatic fall in oil prices that began in March has hurt Cairn and other oil producers. Prices had fallen to under $20 a barrel in late April but have now recovered to $40 but are still way below $66 at the beginning of the year. Vedanta, which is seeking to delist its shares from local bourses, reported a loss of Rs 6,732 crore on a revenue of Rs 35,417 crore in 2019-20. Vedanta also deals in zinc, aluminium, copper, iron ore and steel. Low prices have pushed several oil and gas producers around the world to reduce capital-spending plans and cut jobs. Some oil companies have also filed for bankruptcy. Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Ghana: COVID-19: Petroleum Commission Estimates Over 450 Job Losses
Ghana’s petroleum upstream regulator, Petroleum Commission, is estimating that over 450 Ghanaians working in the upstream sector will be losing their jobs because of the impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Already, Tullow Ghana, Aker Energy, Halliburton, as well as Schlumberger, have reduced their workforce and more are yet to be sent home.
Prior to the outbreak of COVID-19 in the West African nation, most of the International Oil Companies (IOCs) had planned to undertake drilling campaign, acquisition and interpretation of geological and geophysical data of their oil wells.
However, the outbreak of the virus has forced the IOCs to suspend all these activities.
Delivering a Keynote address at the opening of a three-day webinar organised by the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP), an energy think in the Republic of Ghana, Chief Executive Officer of Petroleum Commission, Egbert Faibille Jnr. mentioned the suspension of the development of the Eban 1X exploratory well of Eni, Nyankom 1X and Kyenkyen-1X appraisal programme of AGM, Afina -1X appraisal programme of Springfield, Exploratory well drilling campaigns of Amni, Eco Atlantic and GOSCO.
According to Mr Faibille, these projects worth US$324 million would have injected life into Ghana’s economy but for the outbreak of COVID-19, they have all been put on hold.
“The consequential effect of the cancellation of these contracts amid already reduced work force in the industry resulted in layoffs both expatriates and local personnel. Over 450 Ghanaians in Aker Energy, Tullow, Schlumberger, Halliburton, Baker Hughes, etc. are expected to lose their jobs as a result of the pandemic,” he said.
He noted that though the upstream industry had chalked modest success in localising various positions including critical positions in major oil companies, the Commission expects about 40 more roles to be taken over by Ghanaians.
Egbert Faibille, however, expressed fear that the Coronavirus pandemic would have serious ramifications on local content development and localisation efforts of the country.
He said the Commission, on its part, would strive to ensure that upstream companies create the organisation of the future and urged IOCs to review their corporate structure to cut cost, improve operational efficiencies, redesign business models, empower local business, realign job roles and positions as well as reduce headquarters influence on local operations.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
South Africa: Load Shedding Is Back
South Africa’s utility company, Eskom has announced that it is implementing Stage 2 load shedding from Friday due to an increase in generation unit breakdowns that led to a loss of capacity exceeding 3 000 MW.
This will continue until 22:00, with pressure on the grid expected to last over the weekend.
“While five generation units were taken off the grid last night and this morning, a breakdown at the Matimba power station has today resulted in the need for load shedding,” Eskom said in a statement.
Two units at Arnot, as well as a unit each at Kendal, Tutuka and Majuba were taken off the grid last night and this morning, adding up to the loss of 3 000 MW.
There was also a delay in the return to service of a unit at Duvha.
Eskom has managed to avoid load shedding thus far during the lockdown, although Gauteng has faced bouts of localised rolling blackouts known as “load rotation”, which Eskom has attributed to a prevalence of vandalism and illegal connections.
In a separate statement, the City of Cape Town said while Eskom-supplied customers would be on stage 2 load shedding, City-supplied customers would be on stage 1 from 12:00 until 22:00.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
COVID-19: African Energy Chamber Launches New Energy Jobs Portal
The African Energy Chamber and its partners have launched a free-of-access jobs portal for trained and qualified African workforce.
The initiative is aimed at saving local jobs and assisting in the recovery of African energy markets after the Covid-19 crisis.
The collaborative platform is accessible at www.EnergyChamber.org/jobs and relays the latest jobs opportunities for Africans across the continent’s energy markets.
The platform will assist local and international companies in attracting local talent across 30 different skills set in the oil & gas, power and renewable energy sectors.
All energy companies operating in Africa are able to post their job offers for free, and these will be relayed on the platform and via the Chamber’s communications channels after approval by the Chamber’s admin and team.
The jobs portal will be operated and maintained by the African Energy Chamber in order to avoid all fraud and guarantee the credibility of the offers available.
“Local content has always been the number one priority of the African Energy Chamber when advocating for an energy industry that works for Africans and builds truly sustainable business models. With this new platform, we are getting rid of a lot of entry barriers set on the job market by expensive recruitment agencies. This initiative of the Chamber is non lucrative and we encourage all African and international companies to work with us on boosting local jobs creation to support the recovery of our industry and build true sustainability,” declared Nj Ayuk, Executive Chairman at the African Energy Chamber.
The African Energy Chamber is encouraging all companies in search of African talent across the energy industry to submit their job offers directly online via the platform. Any related requests or queries can be addressed to [email protected].
Angola: Gov’t Bows To OPEC+ Whip To Cut Oil Output
OPEC+ decision to crack whip on its cheating members has sent shivers to the spine of oil producing Central Africa nation, Angola, to express its readiness to cut oil output.
Three weeks after a crackdown on members of the oil coalition lagging in their delivery of promised oil output cuts, the last main straggler has given assurances that satisfy the group’s leadership.
Angola, a Central African oil country, has sent a new letter to OPEC’s president committing to full compliance with its output target, as well as additional cutbacks in compensation for earlier cheating, according to a delegate who asked not to be identified.
Algeria: Minister Calls For Strengthening Of Local Content SectorAccording to Worldoil.com, Angolan Oil Minister, Diamantino Pedro Azevedo issued the letter expressing their commitment to the newly appointed Algerian Energy Minister, Abdelmajid Attar who, this year, holds OPEC’s rotating presidency pledging the country’s “best efforts.” The follow-up correspondence this week, combined with signs that Luanda has cut loading programmes, has assuaged concerns about Angola’s commitment. The assurances from Angola, plus data showing other lagging countries implemented a larger share of their cuts in June than May, suggest the issue of compliance will be less contentious than recent OPEC+ meetings.
Ghana Power Compact: Providing Vital Power Infrastructure To Meet Ghana’s Development Needs
Very few people across the world expected to begin the year 2020 locked up in their homes, and faced with restrictions on some of their social freedoms. While many heard the news about the soaring coronavirus infections in China in December 2019 and the early months of 2020, there was little expectation that the disease, named COVID-19 will turn out to be a pandemic.
Even prior to the time when the World Health Organization (WHO) had recognized more than 11 million confirmed cases and over 500,000 deaths in 216 countries as at July 6, lockdowns and restrictions on social activities, especially movements across borders had become a common global feature. Ghana was not an exception. Ghana’s confirmed case count reported by the Ghana Health Service as of July 6, 2020, shows over 20,000 infections, more than 14,000 recovered and 122 deaths.
As part of the measures to fight the spread of the COVID-19 disease, people all over the world have been strongly advised by the WHO and their Governments to observe certain protocols, including social distancing, washing their hands or cleaning them with alcohol-based sanitizers, and wearing face and nose masks. Additionally, the protocols advise on covering the mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing, self-isolating if one develops symptoms or is asymptomatic, while persons who contract the disease are quarantined and given emergency care.
Transition To Renewable Energy Is Not An European Solution, It Is In Africa’s Interest – IES AnalystsWhile the global search for a vaccine to conquer coronavirus lingers, many discussions fail to include a critical factor which enables most of the measures deployed to combat the disease to be effective. The availability of adequate, quality and reliable electric power is this critical factor. It is required to ensure that ‘lockdown’ directives are successful and to give people infected with the virus, a better chance to go through prescribed treatments and achieve recovery. It is Power that ensures that potable water flows through taps, to use for the regular hand-washing exercises needed to fight the disease. Health Facilities, Emergency Care Centres, factories that produce sanitizers and PPEs, etc, need sustainable electricity supply, while electricity in homes makes people comfortable enough to stay at home and curtail non-critical outdoor activities. Like oxygen, it is easy to forget the worth of electricity when it is available. The unavailability of quality and sustainable electricity breeds poverty, poses security threats and stunts economic growth. Indeed, global access to electricity is envisioned as critical for the World’s sustainable development and is underscored in SDG 7, among the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is for these reasons that the Ghana Power Compact, signed between the Governments of Ghana and the United States, through its Agency the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), is providing Ghana with funding of US$308 million for investments in her electricity distribution system, and thereby make it reliable and available for use, not only to propel economic growth but also to equip and make Ghana ready to meet challenges like those posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and other natural disasters. The five-year Compact Program, which became operational in September 2016, was developed at a time when Ghana suffered an unprecedented power availability crisis. Funds under the Compact Program are being disbursed across four key Projects to build infrastructure that will improve the quality and reliability of electricity supplied to homes, factories, businesses, markets, economic enclaves, institutions and health facilities among others. The major infrastructural interventions include the construction of two large Bulk Supply Points (BSP) at Kasoa and Pokuase, to forestall overloads at the distribution service points in ECG’s Southern Region and to meet the high projections for electricity demand in future. On completion, communities and towns in and around Kasoa and Pokuase will experience significant improvements in the adequacy, quality and reliability of supply, as well as reductions in power outages. The construction of two vital Primary Substations at Kanda and in the University of Ghana, Legon, all close to three critical health facilities – the 37 Military Hospital, the Greater Accra Regional Hospital, the new University of Ghana Teaching Hospital and the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, a major testing Centre for COVID-19, will be helpful in meeting the power supply needs of these facilities. These are the frontline health facilities supporting the fight against this deadly pandemic as inputs into the resources needed in the effective management of Ghana’ health delivery infrastructure. These prioritized Projects also highlight the Compact’s objective of improving the quality of life in all the beneficiary communities and ensuring that power is always available at the beneficiary Institutions to allow all to have access to quality health care at all times. “The Compact’s flagship Projects, now under construction, will fill an infrastructure gap with assets that will contribute to the resolution of the perennial power supply challenges experienced by the beneficiary health facilities, enabling these critical facilitates to fulfil their full obligations as life-saving facilities”, said Martin Eson-Benjamin, Chief Executive Officer of the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA), the Accountable Entity for the implementation of the Power Compact Program. Besides, the provision of some vital power supply assets, the Power Compact’s Race to Retrofit Program, is also helping some public Institutions to reduce their energy costs by an estimated 30 per cent. The intervention is replacing high energy-consuming appliances such as refrigerators, air-conditioners, fans and lighting systems in these Institutions with energy-efficient types, at an estimated cost of US$3.0 million. The Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, the Adabraka Polyclinic and the Ministry of Health are the primary beneficiaries of the Race to Retrofit Activities, together with three others, namely; the Ministry of Education, the Department of Urban Roads, the University of Ghana and the Ghana Education Service’s Head Office Building. Ms Esther Tetteh, Administrator for the Child Health Department at Korle-Bu, lauds the Compact’s intervention and confirms that most of their electrical appliances were obsolete, consequently the cost of maintaining them was high. The retrofitting initiative by MiDA would therefore significantly reduce the Department’s maintenance costs and their energy consumption. The intervention carried out in four blocks of Korle Bu, the nation’s premier hospital, will also reduce the Hospital’s electricity consumption, estimated at 2.8 million kilowatt/hour per year, by 40 per cent. Collectively, the three Health Institutions could save over GHS 2million of their annual energy costs. As Ghana makes progress in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the importance of electricity in providing access to quality health care for Ghanaians cannot be overlooked. Through the Ghana Power Compact Program, it is expected that the investments now being made into the country’s power distribution infrastructure, shall result in a resilient and brighter Ghana. Source:Millennium Development Authority (MiDA)
Nigeria: Federal Gov’t Never Promised To Keep Fuel Price Permanently Low — Petroleum Minister
Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, has clarified the stance of the Federal Government concerning the deregulation of the downstream petroleum industry and the recent hike in price of petrol.
According to him, at no time did the Federal Government promised to keep the price of petrol permanently low.
The clarification follows concerns being raised by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the United Labour Congress (ULC), other labour bodies and trade unions over uncertainty in the deregulation policy.
The interest groups called on the government to immediately reverse the recent hike in the price of petrol.
However, in a statement issued in Abuja Thursday, Chief Timipre Sylva noted that after a thorough examination of the economics of subsidising Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, for domestic consumption, the federal government concluded that it was unrealistic to continue with the burden of subsidizing PMS to the tune of trillions of Naira every year.
This, he said, becomes even more relevant, especially as subsidy was benefiting in large part, the rich, rather than poor and ordinary Nigerians.
He, however, maintained that the government was mindful of the likely impact PMS prices would have on Nigerians, adding that to alleviate this, the government was working very hard to roll out the auto-gas scheme, which would provide Nigerians with alternative sources of fuel and at a lower cost.
According to Sylva, when crude oil prices were down, government, through its regulatory functions ensured that the benefits of lower crude oil prices were enjoyed by Nigerians by ensuring that PMS price was lowered, adding that at that time, the government indicated that increasing crude oil prices would also reflect at the pumps.
He blamed fuel subsidy for the low refining capacity in the country, noting that subsidy made it impossible to attract the much-needed investments into the refining sector.
He said, “This is a necessary action taken by a responsible government in the overall interest of Nigerians. Indeed, one of the reasons we have been unable to attract the level of investments we desire into the refining sector has been the burden of fuel subsidy.
“We need to free up that investment space so that what happened in the banking sector, aviation sector and other sectors can happen in the midstream and downstream oil sector. “We can no longer avoid the inevitable and expect the impossible to continue. There was no time Government promised to reduce pump price and keep it permanently low.”
He called on Nigerians to ignore the antics of unscrupulous middlemen who would want status quo to remain at the expense of the generality of Nigerians.
He added that in addition to attracting investments and creating jobs and opportunities, the deregulation policy would free up trillions of naira to develop infrastructure instead of enriching a few.
He said, “Deregulation means that the Government will no longer continue to be the main supplier of petroleum products. But will encourage private sector to take over the role of supplier of Petroleum Products.
“This means also that market forces will henceforth determine the prices at the pump. In line with global best practices, Government will continue to play its traditional role of regulation; to ensure that this strategic commodity is not priced arbitrarily by private sector suppliers; a regulatory function not unlike the role played by the Central Bank of Nigeria in the banking sector; ensuring that commercial banks do not charge arbitrary interest rates. “Petroleum products are refined from crude oil.Therefore the price of crude (the feedstock) for the refining process will affect the price of the refined product.”
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
Tanzania: Total MD, Two Others Arrested In A Meeting
Total Tanzania’s Managing Director, Jean-Francois Schoepp, Puma Supply Manager, Adam Eliewinga, and Oryx’s representative, August Dominick were, last week, arrested by security forces in Tanzania and taken into custody for interrogation.
The arrest happened while the three were in a consultative meeting between oil marketers and the Energy and Water Regulatory Authority (Ewura) in Dar es Salaam.
The African Energy Chamber has expressed concern over the development and is calling for the respect of the rule of law in the East African nation.
Given how critical these times are and the ongoing economic crisis across the continent because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Chamber is hoping for a quick and amicable resolution to such disagreements that are detrimental to Tanzanian citizens.
“We hope that any ongoing disagreement between oil marketers and the Tanzanian government will be quickly resolved so everyone can get back to business to provide services to Tanzanian consumers. The Chamber has repeatedly applauded Tanzania for its strike in discovering significant gas resources. With the right infrastructure, Tanzania’s natural resources could transform the country into an oasis of energy growth.
“We do not want to see such isolated incidents affect the attractiveness of the country for foreign investors and ultimately affect its energy independence and slow down jobs creation,” Nj Ayuk, Executive Chairman at the African Energy Chamber, said.
According to the Chamber, it is open to assisting all parties in reaching an amicable solution to ongoing disagreements and calls on all stakeholders to promote a stronger dialogue on ongoing matters of fuel supply across Tanzania.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Sudan: First ‘Solar Lab’ To Provide Testing For Solar Technology Launched
Sudan has launched its first solar laboratory with the aim of providing testing and certification services for solar energy technology.
The lab’s core function is to ensure the quality and longevity of imported solar systems and support Sudan’s solar revolution.
Speaking at the opening ceremony Dr Omar Abdullah Ibrahim who is the director of planning and studies at SSMO indicated, “The opening of this facility constitutes a great leap forward in the renewable energy sector in Sudan.
“The establishment of the laboratory and the setting of standards for solar energy systems enables SSMO to ensure that imported solar systems conform to the approved technical and environmental standards,” he added.
With many of Sudan’s imported solar systems being refurbished, testing guarantees the quality, authenticity and reliability of these products, which will provide up to 20 years of renewable energy for Sudanese users.
The Solar Lab, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), UNDP, SSMO and Ministry of Energy and Mining, will test and certify 20-30 imported solar panels, systems and solar-powered water pumps per day – with thousands already destined for Sudan’s agricultural sector.
The lab’s establishment follows the creation of national, globally-aligned solar technical standards by the SSMO, and will also support solar technology research and technical improvements.
“Sudan has an opportunity for a solar revolution, transforming agriculture, transport and many other sectors,” Selva Ramachandran, UNDP Sudan’s resident representative said.
“Solar energy can unlock economic potential, break reliance on petroleum products with their fuel and subsidy costs, create jobs, boost productivity and protect the environment. In Northern State, an agricultural solar power trial increased productivity and land use by almost 50%, while eliminating fuel costs, and crop loss due to limited fuel supply.”
Ramachandran continued: “Facing the socioeconomic impacts of COVID-19, we must build forward. Solar energy is one way to make that happen, and the Solar Lab is a crucial step.”
In addition to funding, SSMO and the Ministry have contributed a team of technical experts and engineers for the lab’s operation – supported with UNDP training – as well as land and equipment. Additional engineers from the University of Khartoum have been trained and will be involved in the lab’s operations.
SSMO is a Government of Sudan entity established to coordinate Sudan’s engagement with regional and international organisations, including the International Standards Organisation (ISO), SSMO operates 15 testing and certification laboratories across Sudan.
Adding solar technology expands SSMO’s mandate and expertise, ahead of the UNDP / Global Environmental Facility roll-out of 1,469 solar-powered water irrigation pumps to farms in Northern State by 2021.
The Solar Lab and Solar for Agriculture initiatives are part of UNDP Sudan’s broad efforts to drive solar and wind energy in agriculture, transport, housing, and infrastructure. Combined, UNDP Sudan aims to reduce climate impact and reliance on imported fossil fuels, generate livelihoods and increase Sudan’s economic potential.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Ghana Sleeping On Renewable Energy Adoption (Article)
By: Beatrice Annangfio
“All across the world we are noticing growth. Technology growth is the driving principles that are developing renewable energy resources. But Ghana seems to be missing in the puzzle. Renewable energy is a fright to policy makers” – Nana Amoasi VII, IES Executive Director.
Across the world, access to energy is deemed as essential for the promotion of economic growth and reduction of poverty. Modernizing agriculture, increasing trade, empowering women, saving lives, improving transportation, expanding industries, and powering communications, all require abundant, reliable and cost-effective energy access (Sakyi, 2019). Africa, the second most-populated continent in the world, has substantial renewable energy resources, most of which are under-exploited (United Nations, 2020).
The United Nation (UN), opined that based on the limited initiatives that have been undertaken to date, renewable energy technologies (RETs) could contribute significantly to the development of the energy sector in major parts of Africa.
According to the body, renewable energy provide attractive environmentally sound technology options for Africa’s electricity industry. The technologies could offset a significant proportion of foreign exchange that is used for importing oil and fuel for electricity generation in most African countries.
This means that Africa, including Ghana, cannot and should not rule out the enormous benefits associated with renewable energy within the energy mix, having regard to the special circumstance of the necessities and capacity of the continent regarding demand for energy.
Ghana: Enclave Power Company Replies Steel, Cement ManufacturersAlthough, Ghana abounds with renewable energy resource potential, particularly biomass, solar and wind, and to a lesser extent small and mini-hydropower (IRENA, 2020), the bulk of this potential remain largely untapped, according to Ghana’s Ministry of Energy. The country’s National Energy Policy objective of using renewable energy for 10 percent of total energy production by 2020, which has recently been amended to 2030, was translated into the Generation Master Plan as 10 percent of the electricity generation mix. This focused exclusively on grid-connected applications, essentially 6 percent dispatchable and 4 percent variable renewable energy power. Investor interest in developing variable renewable energy power has increased at a time when thermal power generation is expensive and backup capacity in nearing zero. The time has therefore come for the Government of Ghana (GoG) to assess the grid conditions to accommodate variable renewable energy. This will further help establish technology-specific targets and related definite capacity additions, thereby increasing market confidence and competition. This may lead to reductions in power generation costs. The Senegal Example While Ghana fails to tap into its renewable energy potential, Senegal seems to have found the relevant steps to explore all possible and untapped potential in the country, and could be said to be leading in the quest to explore renewable energy as part of the energy mix. In February 2020, the first large scale wind farm in West Africa was inaugurated in Senegal. His Excellency (HE) Macky Sall, Head of State of Senegal, inaugurated the first part of the 158MW Taiba N’Diaye wind farm, which was developed by United Kingdom (UK) based company Lekela Power. During the opening procedure, Macky Sall is reported to have enthusiastically mentioned that this is only the first step in making Senegal a country which will in the future mostly rely on renewable energies, and making a strong commitment to extend as quickly as possible the Taiba wind farm. The project, once fully operational, will provide clean, cheap and reliable electricity for around 2 million people in Senegal. The government of Senegal has made the development of the power sector a key component of its plan to make the West African country an emerging economy by 2025. One of Senegal’s priorities for achieving this is increasing access to electricity, particularly in rural areas through wind power and solar photovoltaics (PVs); the conversion of light into electricity, according to the country’s 2018 energy policy. Ghana’s Case While the Lekela project developed throughout the past years was inaugurated, a similar development of Lekela in Ghana sits, waiting for the green light from Cabinet and Parliament to proceed. The 225 Megawatts (MW) wind farm at Ayitepa, which was developed by the Swiss company NEK Umwelttechnik AG for Lekela Power, is said to have procured all required permits and authorisations in order to be implemented and constructed. But despite all these attempts to explore our untapped potential in renewable energies, the Government of Ghana has not exuded the needed support for the project, and to make the country a renewable energy hub. Suffice it to say that, in its budget statement presented by the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta on March 02, 2017, in clause 468, indicated that Government will facilitate the development and implementation of the Ayitepa project. The implementation of this paper is yet to be made manifest outside the books. The said Ayitepa project could have been ready to be built by end of 2017 if Ghana had not gone to sleep on its renewable energy commitment. Costs According to the IRENA, more than 50 percent of the renewable capacity added in 2019 achieved lower electricity costs than new coal. Solar photovoltaics (PV) reveals the sharpest cost decline over 2010-2019 at 82 percent, followed by concentrating solar power (CSP) at 47 percent, onshore wind at 40 percent, and offshore wind at 29 percent. Also, electricity costs from utility-scale solar PV dropped 13 percent year-on-year, reaching nearly 7 cents (US$0.068) per kilowatt-hour (kWh) in 2019. Onshore and offshore wind both fell about 9 percent year-on-year, reaching US$0.053/kWh and US$0.115/kWh, respectively, for newly commissioned projects. There is overwhelming literature to support that renewable energy comes at a cheaper cost compared to fossil fuel. This is perhaps why Lekela even offered to Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) a price of 8.9 US Cents per kWh for the sale of the wind electricity. But be that as it may, there has been no further commitment on the part of Government towards the implementation of this project. This means that the Ghanaians and local industries would still have to pay very high prices for their electricity because the Government concluded with Independent Power Producers (IPPs), who use gas or oil (fossil fuels) for their plants, offtake agreements for exorbitant high prices. While Senegal changes its old and outdated electrical generation plants to renewables, the Ghanaian Government is obviously sleeping. It continues to rely on old, expensive and outdated power plants, when the future will only belong to renewables. The success story of Senegal should be an indicator that clean energy is possible, feasible and a viable alternative in the energy mix. The Swiss project developer NEK has also other wind energy projects in Ghana under development, such as the 200MW Konikablo wind farm. This project is also ready for construction, awaiting few permits from government. Barring the lukewarm attitude of government, produced electricity from the project would have been ready to be fed unto the West Africa Power Pool (WAPP) for possible exports to surrounding countries for use. This means that aside being available for local consumption, surrounding countries stands to profit from this cheap and reliable electricity produced from Ghana. As it stands now, the Ghanaian population would have to wait even longer to get cheap and reliable electricity. It is therefore overdue that the Government changes its outdated, old fashioned attitude to support only polluting, expensive and unreliable power plants. Government’s Expected Role Maybe someone must tell Mr. President not to sleep any longer on this essential commodity which could provide abundant, reliable and cost-effective electricity access. He must wake up and provide the necessary approval so the country can proceed to implement renewable energies, otherwise, Ghana will lose its pre-dominant role in West Africa. The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) has taken note of the acceptance of renewable by the local populace, and therefore calls on Government to facilitate the spread of renewable energy technologies. What is required of Government is an established set of end-user access facilitation options, which could include targeted subsidies and deferred payment schemes that could be pre-financed directly by service providers or through a microfinance institution. It also needs to establish sound business models for both stand-alone systems and mini-grids to increase the viability and sustainability of decentralised renewable energy projects, and provide access to electricity services in rural Ghana. It is hoped that this can be achieved by getting the Renewable Energy Fund (REF) up and running alongside other financing support mechanisms like group lending approaches and sustainable credit programmes for low-income operators and farmers. Researchers should be supported in designing prototypes for solar dryers that could be manufactured locally. The government is also to lead awareness-raising campaigns and communications strategies, improving end-user knowledge of the new opportunities and benefits of off-grid renewable energy systems. A critical look at the role of Government as espoused by the IRENA, proves that the government has a dominant role to play to make renewable energy as alternative source of energy within the energy mix. Therefore, the Government must show the same effort and commitment to renewable energy as they have shown for non-renewable energy sources over the years. It is imperative to say that if Government must meet its National Energy Policy objective of using renewable energy for 10 percent of total energy production by its new set target for 2030, then it ought to do more than what the country is currently experiencing. Written by Beatrice Annangfio, Institute for Energy Security (IES) ©2020 Email: [email protected] The writer is a Private Legal Practitioner working with the IES as an Analyst with the Policy and Sustainable Energy Transition Desk.
Ghana: GRIDCo Begins Mass COVID-19 Testing After A Staff Tested Positive
Ghana’s power transmission company, GRIDCo, will from today, Wednesday, July 8 begin a mass testing of its employees at the head office in Tema for the novel coronavirus after a staff of the company tested positive for the contagious disease.
According to GRIDCo, it was informed last Monday that a staff at its Tema office had tested positive for COVID-19.
The company’s Covid-19 Management team has, thus, started a comprehensive contact tracing process within the company and elsewhere in order to ensure appropriate measures are taken to protect lives of those likely to have met the infected person.
Nigeria: IBEDC Decries Vandalism Of 38 Transformers, Other Electrical Installations In Four MonthsIn line with this, a decision has been taken to undertake mass testing of all staff who have been to the Tema office enclave since Monday, June 15, 2020. “This will enable us to immediately identify, isolate and treat employees who may test positive. “The company urges all staff to continue to adhere to the Covid- 19 safety protocols,” the company said in a Memo to staff. Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Ghana: GRIDCo To Undertake Mass COVID-19 Test After A Staff Tested Positive
Ghana’s power transmission company, GRIDCo, is carrying out a mass testing of its employees at head office in Tema for the novel coronavirus after a staff of the company tested positive for the contagious disease.
According to GRIDCo, it was informed on Monday that a staff at its Tema office had tested positive for COVID-19.
The company’s Covid-19 Management team has, thus, started a comprehensive contact tracing process within the Company and elsewhere in order to ensure that appropriate measures are taken to protect the lives of those likely to have met the infected person.
Ghana: GRIDCo Appoints Florence Nuamah Agyei As New Human Resource DirectorIn line with this, a decision has been taken to undertake mass testing of all staff who have been to the Tema office enclave since Monday June 15, 2020. The company has scheduled the mass testing to begin on Wednesday, July 8, 2020. “This will enable us to immediately identify, isolate and treat employees who may test positive. “The company urges all staff to continue to adhere to the Covid- 19 safety protocols,” the company said in a Memo to staff.