Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (Ketraco) is set to introduce wheeling tariffs next year on electricity transported through part of its network, mainly via interconnections with neighbouring countries.
“Ketraco will soon start earning money through wheeling charges, especially on interconnectors, which is set to strengthen our operations,” Mr. Fernandes Barasa, Managing Director of Ketraco told African Energy recentlty.
The new income comes as Ketraco positions itself to take over the system operator role from Kenya Power.
About 175 million citizens in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) sub-region are living without electricity.
This represents 50 per cent of the 350 million citizens in the 16 member economic block covering the entire region.
Executive Director of ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE), Dr Mahama Kappiah disclosed the just ended ECOWAS Sustainable Energy Forum in Accra, capital of Ghana.
The development is a serious threat to the achievement of Goal 7 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 7).
SDG 7 focuses on affordable, reliable and sustainable access to modern energy services.
This includes ensuring universal access to energy services (SDG 7.1), increasing the proportion of renewable energy sources used to supply these services (SDG 7.2) and doubling the rate of energy efficiency improvements globally (SDG 7.3).
Access to energy is crucial for achieving almost all of the Sustainable Development Goals, from the eradication of poverty through advancements in health, education, water supply and industrialization to combating climate change.
Energy has been described as core to achieving the 2030 Agenda.
Despite this, based on current trends there will still be 2.3 billion people globally who will not have access to clean efficient cooking technologies that protect their environment and health.
This problem must be urgently addressed to meet the targets of SDG 7 and the other SDGs, particularly those linked to mitigating climate change (such as SDG 13).
The proposed global approach is to use public funding to strongly encourage investment in renewable energy and energy efficient technologies.
In particular, local capacity building to support private sector investment in decentralised energy infrastructure is seen as a key approach to enabling equitable access to energy.
The High-Level Political Forum review of SDG 7 has emphasised the importance of regional cooperation to this end the ECOWAS region since 2013 adapted ambitious sustainable energy and energy access objectives that must be attained between 2020 and 2030.
The West Africa Region possesses enormous renewable energy potential and there was the need to utilize the current energy resources it has in a more efficient manner to ensure universal access to all the citizenry by 2030, Mr Kappiah indicated.
Per the region’s own timeline rules as entrenched in the regional policies on renewable energy and energy efficiency, the region has a long way to go in achieving its targets.
In terms of the share of renewable energy in the overall electricity mix, the region was currently at just 26% which included large hydro.
The region stands short of the 35% target by 2020 and 48% by 2030.
The challenges, Mr Kappiah said called for rigorous promotion and deployment of off the grid solutions to ensure that the region attains its target by 2020.
Currently, he said the region has less than 600 operational clean energy mini-grids which falls short of the regional target of 60,000 clean energy mini-grids.
According to him, the region can boast of one gigawatts of renewable energy projects scheduled to be commissioned within the next two years which would push the region towards its global objective.
He indicated that as far as energy efficiency was concern the region was still experiencing electricity losses of up to 40% in some utilities.
He said uptake of clean cooking was still at a slow pace, and similarly energy efficiency in buildings and industry was still at a low level.
Mr Kappiah said the challenges facing the region demonstrate the need for the establishment of a robust partnership to attract major investments.
The ECOWAS sustainable Energy Forum (ESEF) is an annual forum that provides ECOWAS member states with a platform to assess progress made by national and regional levels towards achieving the 2020/2030 sustainable energy targets.
It would be recalled that the ESEF was instituted in 2017 by ECREEE to bolster efforts of member states, along with local, regional and International initiatives in harnessing the region’s vast renewable energy potential by facilitating investment in the regional energy sector.
The Ghana Energy Awards (GEA) wishes to inform all esteemed stakeholders in the country’s energy sector that nominations into the third edition will draw to a close by end of business today, Friday October 25.
The 2019 Awards features 21 categories for the petroleum, power and renewable subsectors including the coveted Energy Personality of the Year, Chief Executive of the Year, Brand of the Year, Energy Institution of the Year, Energy Efficient Organization of the Year, Energy Efficient Product of the Year, Outstanding Staff of the Year, Rising Star awards, Corporate Social Responsibility of the Year, and a host of others.
Fully endorsed by the Ministry of Energy and the World Energy Council, Ghana, the GEA is an industry-owned initiative and recognises the innovation and excellence of players within Ghana’s energy sector and further enhances healthy competition among its players.
This third edition of the Ghana Energy Awards is under the theme: “Energy, The Key to a Sustainable Economy for Industrialization”. It is superintended by an awarding panel composed of experts in the country including Dr Jemima Nunoo (Director, Centre for Management Development, GIMPA), Dr Felix Asante (former Director of ISSER, University of Ghana), Dr Kwame Ampofo (former Chairman of the Energy Commission), Lawyer Kwame Jantuah (Energy Consultant) and Dr Lawrence Tetteh, renowned Evangelist.
Ing. Henry Teinor, the Director of the Awards said the GEA, since its inception in 2017, has continuously strived to maintain its integrity as a true reflection of the industry’s annual performance and therefore called on all stakeholders in the sector to fully participate.
The Ghana Energy Awards is organised by the Energy Media Group in partnership with CH Business Consulting Ghana.
The awards ceremony is slated for November 29 at the Labadi Beach Hotel, Accra.
Electrical Contractors Association in the West African nation, Ghana, have welcomed the decision by the Akufo-Addo-administration to terminate the concession agreement signed between the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and Meralco-led Power Distribution Services (PDS) Ghana Limited.
In a press statement signed by the President of the Association Nana Addo Tetebo, it said: “We hereby write to show our appreciation to the government of Ghana for its swift, albeit meticulous, approach in terminating the concession agreement between the Electricity Company of Ghana and the Power Distribution Services Limited.
“We, as contractors, are very elated as our issues of non-payment of contracts are expected to be put to rest within the shortest possible time as calm has been restored by the government,” the statement said.
The Association pledged its full support to the government as ECG reassumes full operational and financial control of the electricity distribution business in the Southern Zone of Ghana.
“If ECG does things right in terms of improving efficiency and reducing distribution losses, the electricity business in Ghana needs no concession.
“We hope and pray that, with the current trend of events, the ECG will improve its ways and manage the electricity business in the interest of Ghanaians,” the statement concluded.
Background
The government of Ghana terminated concession agreement Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) signed with Power Distribution Services (PDS) Ghana Limited on October 18, 2019.
A letter dated 18th October, 2019 signed by Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta said: “Following consultations with Government, we wish to emphasize that Government remains strongly committed to the Compact and to private sector participation in the Electricity Company of Ghana.”
“Secondly, the facts detailed below clearly justify the discontinuance of the current concession which, it should once again be emphasized, does not in any way diminish the Government of Ghana’s commitment to private sector participation in Ghana’s energy sector. Indeed, Government intends to see this PSP through in a manner that respects due process and fidelity to the relevant transaction documents and underlying Compact,” the letter said.
Cameroon’s national electricity, which supplies has been notoriously unreliable and subject to power cuts, is likely to improve in the coming months.
This is because three power projects being financed by the African Development Bank (AFDB) at the cost of $121.4 million from 2010-2011 are almost complete.
They will provide long-suffering Cameroonians with much more reliable electricity.
“Completion of work on transport lines, line maintenance and especially the replacement of wooden electricity transport poles with concrete poles are all part of the system improvements, whose goal is to increase the quality and reliability of public access to electricity.
“The Lom Panga storage reservoir project is complete, but the dam’s generating plant is still under construction. In the meantime, two other power plants, Kribi and Dibamba, have begun working to strengthen Cameroon’s generating capacity,” a statement copied to energynewsafrica.com indicated.
In November 2011, the African Development Bank awarded $62.9 million for the construction of Lom-Pangar, the hydroelectric generation’s ‘lungs’ in the country’s east region.
The project included the construction of a reservoir (6 billion cubic meters of water retained) for regulating the Sanaga’s flow and optimising generation during low water periods at the Song Loulou plant (335 MW) and the Edea plant (224 MW).
The production from these two plants has grown from 450 MW in 2011 to 729 MW now.
The statement noted that a 30-MW hydroelectric generating plant is also under construction at the base of the dam.
This is expected to be linked to the Bertoua thermal plant by a 105-km 90kV line that would start to work in May 2021 following the installation of an evacuation station and the construction of its four turbines.
The 216-MW capacity Kribi gas-fired generating plant began to work in 2013 after receiving $32.8 million from the African Development Bank in July 2011 for an expansion project. Its production goal is 330 MW.
Currently, the power plant has a 100-km 225 kV transport line connecting it with the Magombe substation in the Edea region in the country’s south region.
The plant operates with natural gas (with light fuel oil as emergency backup) from the Sagana South offshore gas field.
The Kribi gas-fired generating plant and the Dibamba generating plant provide access to electricity for close to half of Cameroon’s population.
The Dibamba heavy fuel oil generating plant was also designed to meet the serious problem of power cuts during the dry season. It was the first of the three plants to receive financial support from the African Development Bank of $25.6 million in April 2010. Built to mitigate the country’s shortage of electricity, high demand quickly outpaced its capacity the day after it began operations.
Located in the outskirts of Douala, Cameroon’s second largest city, Dibamba is an 86-MW thermal generating plant with a 2-km 90 kV transport line linked to the network serving the most remote and densely populated areas in the country’s west region.
With an estimated 23,000 MW hydroelectric production capacity, Cameroon has the second largest hydroelectric potential in Africa and the 18th largest worldwide. The country plans to complete the development of its hydroelectric industries by 2035. Construction of the Nachtigal hydroelectric generating plant began in 2019 and will be complete in about five years, with an estimated generating capacity of 420 MW.
The African Development Bank has awarded a funding package of $154.8 million for the completion of this generating plant. Other development partners, such as the World Bank, the European Investment Bank and Proparco, are also involved.
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
The Vice President of the Republic of Ghana, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has cautioned that the ECOWAS region risks losing out on the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 if the issue of low access to electricity is not resolved in the region immediately.
In his view, the ECOWAS region is at a disadvantage when it comes to the use of electricity for socio-economic activities as more than half of the citizens are deprived access to modern energy services.
Dr Bawumia has, therefore, charged leaders of the ECOWAS region to put in place measures and structures that are critical to the development of the countries and the region at large.
“The ECOWAS region, with less than half of its citizens having access to modern energy services, is consistently deprived of the full benefits of electricity for socio-economic development. If the challenges of low electricity access are not curbed as soon as possible, there are strong indications that it will be impossible to achieve the SDGs by 2030.
“We have the responsibility to lift our people out of poverty by providing them with the right infrastructure and systems needed for their development,” Dr Bawumia said in a Facebook post after he addressed the opening ceremony of the 3rd ECOWAS Sustainable Energy Forum (ESEF) and Exhibition in Accra, Ghana, where he was the Guest Speaker.
The forum, which was put together by ECOWAS, in collaboration with the ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE), Ghana’s Ministry of Energy and key development partners, offered stakeholders the opportunity to assess their progress six years, after regional policies on renewable energy and energy efficiency were adopted by the ECOWAS Heads of State and Government.
The ESEF promotes exchange of ideas and cooperation to support the acceleration of sustainable solutions for the region’s energy situation.
The forum provides a platform for improving the policy and regulatory landscape for private sector investment, as well as facilitates networking and partnerships between ECOWAS policymakers, regional and international private sector players and financial institutions.
Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia(in blue attire),Ghana’s Vice President cutting the tape to open the forum
Lukoil, Russia’s second largest oil company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Equatorial Guinean government) at the Russia–Africa Summit Sochi.
President of Lukoil, Vagit Alekperov initialed the deal on behalf of his company while Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima, Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea Gabriel signed on behalf of his country.
The memorandum lays the basis for Lukoil’s potential participation in projects to explore and produce hydrocarbons in Equatorial Guinea.
Active in Africa since 1995, Lukoil develops projects mainly in West and Central African countries – Ghana, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nigeria.
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
General Electric(GE) and Africa’s leading cement producer Dangote Cement Plc have signed an agreement for the deployment of GE’s Asset Performance Management (APM) digital solution to reduce unplanned downtime and enhance performance at its two cement plants in Obajana and Ibese, Nigeria.
The project includes extending the current service agreement for an additional 50,000 operating hours for the seven GE LM6000PC aeroderivative gas turbines installed at the sites. GE’s total plant solutions will improve efficiency, reliability essential to continuous operations and the plants’ business strategy.
“Power supply is both a key input and a major cost (https://bit.ly/32KkCl1) in our manufacturing process,” Ravi Sood, Operations Director, Dangote Cement Plc said in a statement copied to energynewsafrica.com.
“Operational performance is crucial to our cement plant’s overall productivity, directly affecting end products. Being at the front of cement production in Africa, we believe extending our services agreement with GE and the introduction of digital solutions will allow us to improve efficiencies, anticipate further reductions in unplanned downtime and become more self-sufficient in power production in a country which, with approximately 190 million inhabitants, is the most populous country in Africa and the seventh most populous country in the world.”
APM leverages cutting-edge technology to monitor the performance of power generation assets to reduce downtime, avoid turbines damage and remotely predict and resolve issues. APM sensors will be installed not only on the seven aeroderivative turbines, but also on their associated generators and gear boxes to predict and accurately diagnose issues with greater accuracy before they occur.
“Energy infrastructure is getting smarter, and digital solutions allow not only the shift from traditional calendar-based repairs to predictive maintenance, but they also increase power asset availability and reliability,” Elisee Sezan, CEO for GE’s Gas Power businesses in sub–Saharan Africa said.
“We are proud to continue our 13-year collaboration with Dangote Cement to help them support Nigeria and other African countries towards achieving self-reliance and self-sufficiency in the world’s most basic commodities.”
The agreement underscores GE’s commitment to work collaboratively with its customers using the APM software to optimize their performance of assets, increase reliability and availability, minimize costs and reduce operational risks. Earlier this year, GE announced the first digital solutions order in sub-Saharan Africa for Azito in Ivory Coast (https://bit.ly/2BHCGAc) improving power plant output, reliability, availability and operational performance.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Ghana’s power distribution company, Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has assured Ghanaians that the termination of the PDS concession agreement will not result in the interruptions in power supply to consumers.
According to the ECG, it is continuing with all the activities they were doing before the concession was terminated.
Government has terminated the concession agreement the ECG signed with PDS on the basis of ‘fundamental and material breaches’ in the agreement.
The distribution business, which the ECG ceded to PDS, has now been returned to the ECG.
Section of Ghanaians have expressed fear the development may affect power supply given the contention the termination of PDS agreement has created.
However, speaking to energynewsafrica.com in an interview, Public Relations Officer for ECG, Mr Dan Adjei Larbi said there is no cause for alarm.
“Whatever we were doing in our district offices are going to continue. Whatever the staff there will be doing…be it payment of bills, new service, buying of prepaid etc, they will be doing it in the name of the ECG,” he explained.
“If customers want to write cheques, they should do them in the name of the ECG and not any other company,” he stated.
Mr Larbi said they are in the process of changing all the PDS’s symbols.
Touching on whether there would be job losses, Mr Dan Adjei Larbi explained there would be no job loss but said what would happen is job realignment.
Barely a month after the official re-opening of Oil Mining Lease, OML-25 flow station in Belema community in Akuku-Toru Local Government in Rivers State, youths have invaded the flow station and disrupted production operated by Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC.
According to shipsandsand.com.ng, the traditional ruler of Belema, one of the host Communities, King Ibinabo Kalaoriye, who raised the alarm on Wednesday claimed that youths allegedly working for an indigenous oil company stormed OML-25 flow station on Tuesday and disrupted production.
King Kalaoriye who did not state the grievances of the invaders, called on the government and security agencies to investigate and arrest those who invaded the flow station, thereby disrupting the production of over 35,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
The controversial OML-25 flow station, which was shut down and occupied by women and youths of host communities of Belema Offoin-Ama and Ngeje in Akuku-Toru Local Government Area of Rivers State since August 2017 was officially re-opened on amid celebrations on Saturday, September 28.
According to the traditional ruler, “Shell is the operator of the flow station. Government should not allow militants and criminals to create crisis in the Niger Delta beginning from the crisis in Belema flow station. Belema community is ready to create enabling environment for businesses, indigenous and foreign oil companies to operate in the area.”
He said the Federal Government lost such revenue when the flow station was shut in August 2017, until it was officially reopened on Saturday, September 28.
The only indigenous oil company that also has a stake in the Belema OML-25 flow station is Belema Oil Producing Limited but it was not clear as at press time whether it was the company being alluded to by the traditional ruler.
Petrobras and Brazil will continue to dominate the deployment of global FPSOs over the next five years, data and analytics company GlobalData has reported.
According to GlobalData, Petrobras is expected to deploy six planned and nine announced FPSOs by 2025. GlobalData says that during the 2019 – 2025 period, the year 2023 will witness the highest number of FPSO deployed with four deployments.
“Petrobras is expected to add a total crude oil production capacity of 1.5 million barrels per day (mmbd) through its upcoming FPSOs by 2025. Among the upcoming FPSOs operated by Petrobras, Mero 3 and Mero 4 will have the highest crude oil production capacity of 0.2 mmbd each during the outlook period,”Adithya Rekha, Oil and Gas Analyst at GlobalData explained.
GlobalData expects MODEC will follow Petrobras in the number of FPSO deployments, four upcoming FPSOs by 2025.
Per GlobalData, all of the upcoming FPSOs in the company’s portfolio are planned and the Japanese firm is expected to add a total crude oil production capacity of 0.6 mmbd through these upcoming FPSOs by 2025.
According to Rekha, in the 2019-2025 period, SBM Offshore will occupy the third position with the operatorship of three planned FPSOs by 2025.
“These FPSOs are expected to add a total crude oil production capacity of 0.5 mmbd during the forecast period,” Rekha said.
21 FPSOs for Brazil by 2025
In expected FPSO deployments by countries for the same period, Brazil is expected to keep the first place with 21 planned and announced FPSOs during the outlook period 2019 to 2025.
The company’s report, ‘Q4 2019 Global FPSO Industry Outlook – South America Spearheads Global FPSO Deployments’, reveals that Brazil is expected to deploy a total of 11 planned and ten announced FPSOs by 2025. The crude oil production capacity of these upcoming FPSOs is expected to be 2.5 million barrels per day (mmbd) during the outlook period.
“In Brazil, FPSOs are being deployed to develop hydrocarbons in the Santos and Campos basins. The state-owned company, Petrobras, is primarily deploying these FPSOs,” Adithya Rekha, Oil and Gas Analyst at GlobalData indicated.
Angola is expected to deploy the second-highest number of FPSOs globally with five planned by 2025. All the upcoming FPSOs in the country are announced projects. Sonangol P&P and Cabinda Gulf Oil Company are leading in terms of number of deployments in the country with two FPSOs each, while BP Angola will operate the remaining FPSO.
Rekha concludes: “The UK and Nigeria jointly occupy the third position with the deployment of four FPSOs each by 2025. Both countries have one planned and three announced FPSOs, which are expected to be deployed during the outlook period.”
Featured image by SBM Offshore / Graphics Source: GlobalData
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Ghana’s Deputy Minister for Energy in-charge of power, Hon. William Owuraku Aidoo has said President Nana Akufo-Addo should be commended for taking a firm decision to terminate the concession agreement between the government and the Power Distribution Services (PDS) Ghana Limited.
The Akufo-Addo administration officially began processes to terminate the PDS concession agreement on Wednesday after announcing its intent earlier in the week.
Speaking on an Accra-based Citi FM, Mr. Aidoo said although the termination will come with its own disadvantages, the government had to take the decision in the interest of Ghanaians.
“The President and his government decided that as far as we as a nation is concerned, the demand guarantee which is the condition precedent for this compact to be legitimate was not in place and I think the President should be commended for standing its ground.”
“We have been advised and have taken the advice of our advisers to be true…As far as we are concerned, the demand guarantee was not in place so we have taken a decision to safeguard the 3 billion dollars of our assets as opposed to the 190 million dollars predicated on successful completion of the concession. It is a decision that we have taken and there is no major fight between us [government and US].”
ECG takes over power distribution
This latest development has officially paved the way for the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) to assume full control of the electricity distribution business in the southern part of Ghana.
In a statement, the ECG said;
“The Electricity Company of Ghana Limited (ECG) has today, 23rd October, 2019 terminated Private Sector Participation Transaction Agreements with Power Distribution Services Ghana Limited (PDS). ECG has therefore assumed full operational and financial control of the electricity distribution business in the Southern Zone of Ghana with immediate effect. Consequently, all activities which were hitherto undertaken by PDS have reverted to ECG”.
A new Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) study, creating a Profitable Balance: Capturing the $110 Billion Africa Power-Sector Opportunity, shows that status quo energy systems could cost African nations up to $180 billion over the next decade, more than 2.5 times the 2016 gross domestic product of Kenya.
If thoughtful action is taken, it is possible to save $110 billion over the next decade — but only through better planning.
On a continent where more than 600 million people lack access to reliable electricity, reform is necessary, so resources are not wasted.
The current project-centered investment approach makes it difficult for governments and development partners to make informed investment decisions. The consequence is often higher energy costs than are necessary, due to costly or poorly aligned investments.
Instead, governments and their partners should focus on developing well-planned electricity systems in which investments in generation and transmission align not only with each other, but also with people’s demand.
“Procuring power is a necessary element of increasing energy access and driving economic development, but it is far from sufficient. Holistic planning and implementation that includes the full range of supply and demand side solutions, their interactions, and critically, productive use programs that allow homes and businesses to realise the full benefits of electricity, is critical,” Eric Wanless, Africa Energy Programme senior director at RMI said.
Two factors were cited as key contributors to capacity imbalance:
A fragmented, project-focused approach that does not consider whole power system dynamics, including bottlenecks in transmission and distribution
Overly optimistic demand forecasts that are not accompanied by strong programs to create productive demand for power
Key recommendations for investors:
Challenge project developers to clearly articulate how their project fits into the overall system need and what steps they are taking to reduce risk in addition to securing government guarantees and/or take-or-pay contracts.
Encourage and support governments in developing a transparent, collaborative and regular planning process if none exists or if those that do exist aren’t informed by on-the-ground realities.
Diversify investments in the power sector to include critical transmission and distribution and enablers of regional trade and integration, and encourage governments to do the same.
The RMI Africa programme currently operates in Ethiopia, Malawi, Nigeria, and Uganda and focuses on increasing access to and the productive use of sustainable electricity. RMI is a nonprofit organization and serves as an unbiased technical advisor to governments, utilities, developers and other energy stakeholders.
Originally published on powerengineeringint.com
A former Chief Executive Officer of Ghana’s national oil company, Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Mr. Alex Mould has questioned the government’s decision to terminate the PDS deal instead of maintaining it and correcting the error associated with it.
In his estimation, not only will Ghana lose the US$190m funding support from Millennium Challenge Corporation(MCC) but also $400m for the Regional Compact, $500 Gov’t Budgetary Support and $580 from the concessionaire all totalling $1.2billion.
He said the government needs to reverse the termination of the transaction (not shareholders) before the country’s economy gets bigger hits than the $2bn of what the country, Ghana, just lost on the Power Compact alone.
In a post titled: ‘My take’, the finance analyst and former CEO of GNPC indicated the West African nation should have opted for the option of MCC to keep PDS.
Below is Mr. Mould’s full postMy TakeGHANA MAY LOSE MORE THAN GHS10bn IF WE DO NOT CONSIDER LIFELINE GIVEN BY MCC
Why should Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) allow a grace period to reconduct a tender??
Why on earth are we asking MCC to give a grace period for retendering especially since we have been at this Power Compact for over 5 years??
The goofing was identified in February 2019 when PDS could not come up with the Bank Guarantee just before the deadline of March 1, which surprises me as the international player Meralco could easily get its banks in Philippines to Issue. So why was it left to the local shareholders to raise the guarantees – this was the 1st Red flag!
Assets were handed over in March, 2019 in a rushed manner where CPs were not met. Since April there have been to and fro discussions with MCC. Undue influence by people close to government brought us where we are.
The audit completed over 2 months ago and it was clear that Ghana was duped in handing over the ECG assets mainly due to lack of due diligence by the people in charge of the concessionaire privatization.
There is a Ghana Government Transaction team whom the president has appointed his own lawyer to chair – this team has the most power even more than MiDA and ECG.
There is MiDA that reports to the President. There is the IFC, the adviser to MCC and MiDA.
We are where we are because government failed to take the option proposed by MCC to keep PDS contract (ie to abode by sanity of contract’s doctrine) but change the Shareholding especially of the 51% Local players – who had no proof of competence either financial or technically (to have managed something similar in complexity and magnitude) – and replace them with Ghanaian Institutional shareholder in the interim with the ultimate aim at floating all or some of the shares on the stock exchange.
Government refused!! The question is Why??
Remember Meralco is the only reason that the contract for this ECG concessionaire was awarded to the PDS consortium based on their technical and financial clout which none of the other shareholders – including the recently added AEnergia SA, which still remains a mystery in terms of ownership and why at all its in the consortium – and there is no agent to get rid of them.
Let’s put the blame squarely on Ghana! Let’s call a spade a spade!!
We simply goofed on such a serious transaction!!!
This is a reflection of how serious we take things in our beloved country Ghana – led by our ‘Leaders’ whom we have placed so much ‘Trust’ to do the right things.
The focus is not on Ghana First, but rather what “We” get from managing the assets of the state which normally results in short changing the Citizens of Ghana and to the detriment of our economy.
Please don’t blame MCC! The rules of engagement were clear! MCC are just asking us not to take us back years!!!
Lets consider the option and lifeline given by MCC;
– Keep the PDS contracts
– change the undesired Local shareholder and replace them with institutions like SSNIT and or GIFF
– bring in known world class foreign distribution companies (Meralco has been approved) and eliminate AEnergia SA, the scarlet pimpernel in this deal.
What we lose by cancelling the PDS contract and not working a solution with MCC is not just $190m but nearly $1.7bn
– $190m from the Ghana Power Compact
– $400m for the Regional Compact
– $500m Government Budgetary Support
– $580m from the concessionaire
Restructuring of shareholders is also amendable to MCC. Re-tendering the entire transaction is not.
Government needs to reverse the termination of the transaction (not shareholders) before our economy loses more than the $190m of what we just lost on the Power Compact alone.
The real Question is “ Is Ghana prepared to embarrass US Govt on the international scene??”
It is coming……..watch this space !!
END
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
“These FPSOs are expected to add a total crude oil production capacity of 0.5 mmbd during the forecast period,” Rekha said.
21 FPSOs for Brazil by 2025
In expected FPSO deployments by countries for the same period, Brazil is expected to keep the first place with 21 planned and announced FPSOs during the outlook period 2019 to 2025.
The company’s report, ‘Q4 2019 Global FPSO Industry Outlook – South America Spearheads Global FPSO Deployments’, reveals that Brazil is expected to deploy a total of 11 planned and ten announced FPSOs by 2025. The crude oil production capacity of these upcoming FPSOs is expected to be 2.5 million barrels per day (mmbd) during the outlook period.
“In Brazil, FPSOs are being deployed to develop hydrocarbons in the Santos and Campos basins. The state-owned company, Petrobras, is primarily deploying these FPSOs,” Adithya Rekha, Oil and Gas Analyst at GlobalData indicated.
Angola is expected to deploy the second-highest number of FPSOs globally with five planned by 2025. All the upcoming FPSOs in the country are announced projects. Sonangol P&P and Cabinda Gulf Oil Company are leading in terms of number of deployments in the country with two FPSOs each, while BP Angola will operate the remaining FPSO.
Rekha concludes: “The UK and Nigeria jointly occupy the third position with the deployment of four FPSOs each by 2025. Both countries have one planned and three announced FPSOs, which are expected to be deployed during the outlook period.”
Featured image by SBM Offshore / Graphics Source: GlobalData
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com 
