Dr Ben Asante’s impact as CEO of Ghana Gas

Michael Creg Afful
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Dr Ben Asante’s impact as CEO of Ghana Gas
Dr Benjamin K. D Asante, CEO of Ghana Gas Ghana made history in 2011 when the West African country incorporated Ghana National Gas Company (GNGC) and started the development of gas infrastructure in the Western Region town of Atuabo for the processing and transportation of natural gas for both the local and international market. The decision followed recommendations by the National Gas Development Taskforce which was commissioned in February 2011, to review and make appropriate recommendations for speedy realisation of national gas commercialisation infrastructure system, after Ghana found commercial amount of associated gas 60km offshore between the Deepwater Tank and West Cape Three Points. Ghana Gas was mandated to build, own and operate the infrastructure required for the gathering, processing, transportation and marketing of national gas resources in the country.They were to build the offshore pipeline, the onshore pipeline, the Gas Processing Plant, the Natural Gas Liquids (NGLs) Export System and the office complex. Fortunately, Dr Sipa-Adjah Yankey was appointed by the late President JEA Mills, as the first Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ghana Gas and he supervised the infrastructure development of the nation’s premiere gas company. He, however, left office in January 2017 when his party lost the 2016 Presidential Election, whose results ushered in the incumbent New Patriotic Party administration led by President Akufo-Addo. As destiny would have it, Dr Benjamin K. D Asante was appointed by President Akufo-Addo to replace Dr George Sipa-Adjah Yankey. Dr Ben Asante took over Ghana Gas as someone with over 25 years’ experience in the oil and gas industry. Before assuming the position of CEO, he had been the Technical Director of Ghana’s first Gas Infrastructure project and also developed the gas infrastructure master plan for Ghana by 2008.He also served as a consultant to the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) and provided engineering services, project management and technical support for various projects across the world including UAE, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, Mexico, Russia, Thailand and USA. So the question is, what has Dr Ben Asante achieved at the Ghana Gas with all his experience after two year of being in office as the CEO? $ 206m savings due to gas utilization Dr. Ben Asante addressing a press conference at Ghana Gas’ Head Office in Accra At a recent press conference at the company’s head office where Dr. Ben Asante and Ernest Kofi Owusu Bempah Bonsu , Head of Communications at Ghana Gas, addressed the media, it was revealed that the use of processed gas from the Atuabo Gas Processing Plant, in place of Light Crude Oil (LCO), has yielded an average savings of about US$42.6 million in 2017 and about US $206.4 million in early 2018. The rise in savings in 2018 was due to a 43% increase in the price of LCO at 84.7/barrel from US$59.3/barrel in 2017.Since Ghana Gas begun commercial operations in 2015, LPG from Atuabo Gas Processing Plant has, on the average, accounted for 32% of national domestic consumption.The year-on-year analysis (2015-2018) shows that Ghana Gas supplied 40% of domestic LPG demand in 2017, the highest since the commissioning and commercial operations, thereby, reducing LPG import bill by US$47million.In 2018, the LPG supply declined by 2% relative to the 2017 performance due to gas substitution from ENI-Sankofa. $3m monthly savings due to indigenization It is important to emphasize that the decision by management of Ghana Gas not to employ the services of expatriates to manage the plant and its associated pipeline infrastructure, after the Chinese engineers from SINOPEC, who were managing the plant left but to rely on Ghanaian engineers, is saving Ghana about US$3 million monthly. This single decision has resulted to a savings of about US$60 million since April 2017. It is refreshing to also note that the first major maintenance shutdown, which was done between February and April 2018, was also done by staff of Ghana Gas Company. This is said to have enabled ENI to tie-in its pipeline at Sanzule. Gas Pipeline project Under the leadership of Dr. Asante, the company was able to complete the Esiama-Prestea lateral pipeline in 2017. This is to enable the company to send gas to consumers in the mining enclave in the Western Region and eventually to Kumasi in the Ashanti Region. Apart from the above, Ghana Gas is currently working on Karpowership Gas pipeline, which when completed, will supply lean gas to Karpowership barge in Sekondi to save millions of dollars in gas transportation and fuel substation. Expansion works are also ongoing on the Takoradi Regulatory and Metering Station to increase the capacity of TRMS from 130mmscfd to 400mmsfd. Incident free The implementation of Risk Based Process Safety Management by the company has also gone a long way to improve the overall safety management system to the extent that the company has not recorded any incident for two years now.”We also developed and implemented key HSE risks control procedures including the Management of Change Procedure in controlling HSE risk associated with changes and modifications to existing facilities,” Mr Owusu Bempah said. CSR projects It is important to emphasize that Ghana Gas, has also undertaken a number of Corporate Social Responsibility(CRS)projects in its operational areas. In the area of health and sanitation, Ghana Gas has registered 1,350 indigenes of Atuabo and Aboadze under the National Health Insurance Scheme to provide them with insurance so they can access health facilities in the area anytime they feel sick and need treatment. The company has also constructed an eight-seater water closet toilet and a mechanized borehole for Allabokazo.On education, the company has constructed four-Unit Teachers’ quarters in Anokyi and Asemda Suazo to relieve and lessen the pain teachers who are posted in the two communities go through. Ghana Gas has also gone a step further by providing Asemda Suazo an ulra-modern nursery school facility to enable children in the area have education. Aside these, GNGC has also supported Nzulezu Development Committee to rehabilitate their community school building, donated teaching and learning materials to Nzulezu community Basic School, made cash donations to the Domunli enclave for the rehabilitation of their only primary school, as well as a donation of two water tanks to Kikam Technical Institute. In the area of sports, GNGC made cash donations to Karela and Nzema Kotoko Football Club. Takoradi Regulating & Metering Station operated by Ghana Gas Author’s Email: [email protected] Contact: 0243782655

President Of OPEC Member Algeria Steps Down Amid Protests

Michael Creg Afful
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President Of OPEC Member Algeria Steps Down Amid Protests
Algeria’s President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has stepped down from the top office of the oil and gas-rich African nation following weeks of mass protests. Mass protests across Algeria erupted several weeks ago when Bouteflika announced he would run for a fifth term as president. Those protests forced him to rescind that decision, but the momentum against him failed to subside. Instead, it had increased and intended to do so until he steps down entirely. Exxon’s negotiations with Algeria for the development of local shale gas resources are being delayed because of the widespread anti-government protests in the North American country, Reuters reported two weeks ago, citing industry sources. The report came as no surprise as it comes on the heels of other media reports that energy companies are getting nervous about their Algerian plans amid the unrest and widespread protests in the nation rich in oil and gas. Algeria produces around 1 million barrels of oil per day (bpd). According to the latest available figures by OPEC, Algeria’s crude oil production in February stood at 1.026 million bpd. Under the OPEC+ deal for production cuts, Algeria should reduce its output to 1.025 million bpd, down by 32,000 bpd from its October level of 1.057 million bpd. The North African country is home to the world’s third-largest shale gas reserves, estimated at some 2,000 trillion cu ft, according to the Algerian government. Algeria is already an important gas supplier to Europe and is looking to increase its market share there. However, the country’s shale gas fields are concentrated in the south, where the population is against gas exploration. Development plans for the area were already stopped once by local protests last year, but Sonatrach, the state energy company, pledged to continue seeking ways to convince the local community leaders that the plans will benefit them. Source: Oilprice.com

Stable power will remain a mirage without realistic tariffs – Edward Bawa

Michael Creg Afful
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The Minority in Parliament is warning that government risks running Ghana’s energy sector aground if the populace is not made to pay realistic charges for the power consumed. Member of Parliament for Bongo and a former communications consultant with the energy ministry Edward Bawa disclosed that players on the energy supply chain are reeling under serious financial challenges with GRIDCo projected to make losses of some GhC300 million by end of 2019. Speaking on the Ultimate FM’s Breakfast Show, Mr Bawa explained that the Akufo-Addo government made the worst mistake with its 17% reduction in utility tariffs without rather reducing the taxes on utility charges to the public. “In 2016 you will recall that the president stood at Mantse Agbonaa and said electricity bills are more expensive than rent and they reduced the tariffs by 17%. What it meant was that the tariffs were no longer cost reflective. “I was in favour of reduction of tariffs, however, where we should have been reducing tariffs was not the energy charge for the generation of the power, the distribution charge which is used for distributing the power and the transmission charge which goes to the power transmission agencies. “Government, however, decided to keep the taxes which we do not even know what they are using it for, and rather reduced the energy charge by 17% and that is what is causing the problem,” Bawa said. He cautioned that the country should not expect stability in power supply if government refuses to convene a meeting with the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission immediately, to realign the tariffs.

We’re moving power plants from Tema to Takoradi – Amewu

Michael Creg Afful
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We’re moving power plants from Tema to Takoradi – Amewu
Energy Minister, John Peter Amewu Energy Minister John Peter Amewu has questioned the wisdom in building power generation plants at Tema in the Greater Accra Region when all the country’s oil and gas resources and infrastructure exists in Takoradi, Western Region. According to him, transporting the gas all the way from Takoradi to Tema to power the generation plants is very costly to the nation, thus, wondered why such a decision was taken. Speaking at a town hall meeting of the Economic Management Team led by Vice-President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, the Energy Minister, in response to a question asked by a journalist and deferred to him by the vice-president about why the country is currently experiencing intermittent blackouts, said: “As a government, we continue to pay for gas that is available but cannot be used and the government continues to pay for heavy fuel to fire a plant that can equally rely on gas as a cheaper source of fuel. “And, so, what His Excellency has directed me to do is to move the plants that are feeding on heavy fuel from Tema to Takoradi”, he said. “The question we want to ask is: if you have sufficient gas in Takoradi, why will you go and put a plant in Tema? I don’t want to answer those questions … If I had the opportunity then, I’ll not put the plant in Tema, I’ll put the plant near the source of gas. “Because when the gas travels from Takoradi to Tema, it is also not free, it costs about $2.7 million. … For one month, the travelling cost of gas costs this country in a rage of about $15 million; that is just the tariff for the volume of gas that you’ll ship from Takoradi to Tema. The first thing, therefore, is that let us move the plant from Tema to Takoradi, which is a very good management idea…” Mr Amewu said. He said: “Mr Vice-President, the gas, as I’ve talked about, also means that you’ve gas but you are feeding on other expensive fuel because some of the plants are still in Tema that you cannot move. The only ones we are moving are mobile ones. There are some that are fixed, you cannot move them. What do you have to do? “Those that are fixed, let’s move some gas from Takoradi to the fixed plant. That again is cheaper because it reduced the price by more than 7 per cent and, so, it calls for what we call the tie-in. “The tie-in just allows us to be able to flow gas; currently we flow gas from Nigeria through Tema to Takoradi but we cannot flow gas to the reverse direction. So, the current tie-in that allows us to move the gas to Tema. By doing so, we have to stop the flow of gas. The stoppage of the flow of gas takes away almost 650 megawatts of power, so, this explains the intermittent shortfall that we have witnessed. “Fortunately, Mr Vice-President, I have an opportunity to visit the site and I can assure the good people of this country that work is progressing. The best thing we can do is to make sure that we speed up this process and I can assure them that by the 12thof April, we will complete the tie-in”, he explained. Additionally, Mr Amewu said: “What good thing is this tie-in also doing? We are not only tying-in … we have also begun to expand the current capacity of 130 to over 405 standard cubicle metres of gas per day. That is one expansion that we’ve done. “Another thing we have also done is to provide an opportunity for the future because we are a forward-looking government. We are not looking at elections, we are looking at the future. We’ve provided opportunities for future expansions. The government’s idea of One District-One Factory has made us add more valves so that in the future, power agencies or other agencies that want to rely on gas can easily tap in without shutting down. “So, Ghanaians, we are sorry, this short period is just intermittent and I can promise you that from 12 April when the tie-in is completed, you’ll continue to enjoy sustainable power”. Mr Amewu also explained that: “The shortfall we are experiencing currently is as a result of the migration, largely from the gas pipeline to the light crude ready fuel, and also, the diesel plant. We have sufficient diesel currently in the stock of Tema Oil Refinery. “I want to assure Ghanaians that – first of all, we want to apologise for this intermittent supply – but we are never back to an era where we have a consistent, persistent shortfall in supply. We are in an era where there is installed capacity available but what we need to do is to change that installed capacity to availability”.

Bawumia laments GRIDCo’s power transmission deficiencies

Michael Creg Afful
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Bawumia laments GRIDCo’s power transmission deficiencies
Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia

The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has lamented the inability of the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo) to operate at optimum level in the country. He says the company is struggling with transmission challenges as a result of obsolete distribution equipment. Explaining the recent power cuts at a town hall meeting on Wednesday, Dr. Bawumia insisted that Ghana is producing enough power but GRIDCO, the power distribution company, is unable to distribute it due to its old systems. “Even though we don’t have problems with power generation capacity, we have some problems with the transmission. The GRIDCO network is old and it has been unable to invest in high capacity lines because of financial difficulties.” Dr. Bawumia also disclosed that the country is currently paying an amount of $24 million per month for unused power under the agreement with the Independent Power Producers. He said there are fears that amount may double this year. “The energy sector is key for industrialization. We inherited many challenges in the sector but they are being addressed. Ghana has excess capacity in energy generation but the contracts entered into for many of these IPPs are expensive and financially burdensome. Most of these contracts are ‘take or pay’ arrangements. This means that even if we don’t need the power, we still have to pay for it. Ghana is currently paying $24 million a month in excess capacity charges alone for power we have not used. This will increase to about $41 million a month later this year, with the coming onstream of CEN Power, Early Power and Amandi power plants.”

Breaking News: Residents of Odumase-Krobo block roads, burn tyres over ‘dumsor’

Michael Creg Afful
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Breaking News: Residents of Odumase-Krobo block roads, burn tyres over ‘dumsor’
Scene of the protest Information reaching energynewsafrica.com indicates that residents of Odumase-Krobo in the Eastern Region have blocked all the major routes in the area this evening in protest of three days of continuous power outages. The action of the residents, this portal understands, has peeved scores of passengers onboard various vehicles and heading to places like Asesewa, Kpong, Accra and other areas. Reports say the residents are also burning lorry tyres on the Odumase-Asesewa road, Odumase-Kpong road as well as the road from Odumase to Accra. Vehicles from Accra, Asesewa and Kpong which wanted to use Odumase to their various destinations were said to have been made to retun to where they were coming from. Eric Boafo, a reporter with Rite FM, who confirmed the incident, described the situation as worrying and terrible. He said there had been three days of continuous power outages and that the residents hoped that power would be restored. He said the unpleasant situation compelled the residents to do a public announcement to warn that if power was not restored, they would be compelled to hit the streets. According to Eric Boafo, power was restored this afternoon only for it to go off at about 6:25pm. The situation he said angered the residents to hit the streets. Reports say personnel from the Odumase-Krobo Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) are at the scene to quench the fire, but the angry youth are resisting them.

Ghana: NEDCO’s copper cables stolen in Berekum

Michael Creg Afful
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Ghana: NEDCO’s copper cables stolen in Berekum

Copper cables on towers belonging to the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCO) have reportedly been stolen in the Berekum municipality of the Bono Region.

The towers connect to the new sub-station in Berekum which supplies power to Dormaa, Drobo, Sampa, Wamfie, Wamanafo, and other surrounding communities.

This comes barely two weeks ago when some perpetrators hacked down one of GRIDCo’s transmission towers near its head office in Tema.

The Corporate Communications Manager of NEDCO, Maxwell Kotoka, who confirmed the incident of theft said the development is frustrating.

“Some copper cables belonging to us have been cut and taken away from a number of our towers between the new 161Kv sub-station and the 34Kv sub-station for distribution all in Berekum. In all, there are 22 towers and the copper cables have been stolen from 16 of the towers. The copper is not energized, they protect the towers from thunder and lightning,” Mr. Kotoka explained.

He said the theft of the cables could affect power distribution in the area.

“What we have done is that we have reported the incident to the police. We have done some engagements with the assembly, the political leadership of the area, stakeholders on the importance of each person helping in protecting the equipment and accessories,” he added.

Mr. Kotoko said NEDCO has taken steps to engage a contractor to have the stolen cables replace.

“We want to caution that we cannot continue replacing them as they get stolen and so we are urging everybody to be on the lookout for unscrupulous people who engage in the habit of stealing. We are also in collaboration with the driver unions to help us track such persons,” Mr. Kotoka noted.

Source: citinewsroom.com

Exxon May Sell $3B Worth Of Oil, Gas Fields In Nigeria

Michael Creg Afful
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Exxon May Sell $3B Worth Of Oil, Gas Fields In Nigeria

ExxonMobil is considering selling some of its stakes in onshore and offshore fields in Nigeria, and those stakes could potentially raise US$3 billion, Reuters reported on Tuesday, citing banking and industry sources.

Exxon has recently held talks with Nigerian companies to see if there is interest in its assets in Nigeria, some of Reuters’ sources said, as the U.S. supermajor is now predominantly focused on boosting production in the Permian and developing the huge oil discoveries offshore Guyana.

Exxon is set to soon open in Nigeria the so-called data room with details about the oil and gas fields it plans to divest, one source told Reuters.

According to the sources, Exxon officials have recently discussed with Nigerian companies stakes in onshore oil fields, in which Exxon participates in joint ventures with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). The U.S. major, however, is also mulling over selling stakes in offshore oil fields.

Exxon is one of Nigeria’s largest foreign oil operators and its production in 2017 stood at 225,000 bpd.

Nigeria, however, has been a difficult international scene for supermajors in recent years with militant violence disrupting export pipelines and streams and pipeline vandalism leading to spills.

Exxon is now primarily focused on getting the most out of the Permian and of the Guyana discoveries, which are its key growth areas for the coming years.

Exxon plans to significantly boost its earnings and cash flows through 2025, also thanks to asset sales.

“Cumulative cash flow from operations and asset sales over the period from 2019 to 2025 is $24 billion higher than what was communicated at last year’s analyst meeting, including $15 billion from anticipated asset sales from 2019 to 2021,” Exxon said last month.

In its Investor Day presentation in early March, one of Exxon’s key upstream messages was to aggressively enhance its portfolio competitiveness by executing industry-leading exploration opportunities, improving operations, and increasing divestments.

Source: Oilprice.com

Mozambique: Five provinces to gain electricity access

Michael Creg Afful
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Mozambique: Five provinces to gain electricity access
The World Bank has approved a $82 million grant to increase access to electricity in five of the poorest provinces of Mozambique. The provinces include Niassa, Nampula, Zambezia, Cabo Delgado and Sofala. The project is also supported through a $66 million Multi-Donor Trust Fund administered by the World Bank. With a potential to benefit about 1.5 million people, this financing will help with the implementation of the government of Mozambique’s (GoM) Energy for All project, also known as ProEnergia. “The nexus between poverty and lack of electricity has long been established,” noted Mark Lundell, World Bank country director for Mozambique. “This project is part of our multipronged approach to poverty reduction by expanding energy access in Mozambique,” Lundell added. About 70% of Mozambicans do not have access to electricity, which is below the average for sub-Saharan Africa. This project contributes to the implementation of the GoM’s National Electrification Strategy (NES), known as “Programa Nacional de Energia para Todos” by broadening electricity access to peri-urban and rural areas and expanding and densifying the existing grid networks as well as promoting the use of off-grid energy solutions in those areas where the grid extension is considered economically unfeasible. “We will seek to harness economies of scale in existing grid infrastructure,” noted Zayra Romo, the Bank’s task team leader for the project. Using existing network While the existing network reaches all 154 districts in the country, a significant number of households and businesses are still not connected. This project will use existing infrastructure to build additional distribution networks and connect new users; it will also pilot a new business model to promote the development for off-grid energy solutions. “It’s estimated that 272,000 new customers will have access to electricity services as a result of this project, representing about 1.45 million people, of which 74% are in rural areas,” Romo noted. This operation is part of a coordinated effort by the donor community to implement the NES and is in full alignment with the Bank’s ongoing 2017-21 strategy, known as Country Partnership Framework (CPF), for Mozambique. The project supports the implementation of the strategy’s key priorities such as Promoting Diversified Growth and Enhanced Productivity, and Investing in Human Capital; both of which depend on energy access to materialize. It will also contribute to the strategy’s cross-cutting issues, such as gender and climate change. For example, by supporting equal access to low-emission and renewable energy mini-grids, the project will contribute to reduce women and children’s exposure to indoor air pollution, among other benefits.

Its interesting Ghanaians are not tolerant of one week power disturbance – Deputy Energy Minister

Michael Creg Afful
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Its interesting Ghanaians are not tolerant of one week power disturbance – Deputy Energy Minister
Deputy Energy Minister, William Owuraku Aidoo

Deputy Energy Minister, William Owuraku Aidoo is in ‘shock’ over the reactions of Ghanaians towards government with regards to recent power outages in the country. Particularly after what appeared to be a rather extended period of ‘Dumsor’ under the erstwhile John Dramani Mahama administration, he is surprised that the same persons who suffered for well over months will be complaining about power outages he claims would last for just 12 days. The power cuts which have been ongoing for almost three weeks now has seen sector officials trying to salvage the situation and reassure Ghanaians of better services. Aside from the usual reassuring of citizens that government is working around the clock to bring relief, the deputy minister’s latest interpretation was to refer Ghanaians to the erstwhile Mahama administration where ‘dumsor’ was persistent, irregular, and unpredictable for several years. According to the deputy minister, if Ghanaians could endure such serious power outages and rationing that has been around for over three years, then they should be able to manage with just twelve days of unstable power supply. “It is really interesting that Ghana has gotten into the state that we are. Within two years of Nana Akufo-Addo’ government, Ghanaians are not of one week of power disturbance and that is saying something. It is only a week and it’s causing a lot of difficulties and inconvenience to people but they cannot stand it unlike sometime back when we had to endure years and years of dumsor”, he stated. Background Seven out of sixteen regions in the country are expected to experience 12-days of load-shedding known in the local parlance as ‘Dumsor’ starting March 30, 2019. According to sources, the Greater Accra, Central , Western, Eastern, Ashanti, Volta Regions are part of the affected areas following a 300MW loss of power as a result of the shutdown of Atuabo Gas Processing Plant for mandatory maintenance The valve of Atuabo Gas Processing plant in the Western Region was closed Saturday March 30 for a 12-day outage to complete the final tie-in works under the Takoradi-Tema Interconnection Project. As a result of the termination of gas flow from the west, the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo) has requested a total load reduction of 300MW from 08:00hrs to 18:00hrs. Source: Ghanaweb. com

Ignore Rumour Mongers Seeking To Destroy BOST-Workers

Michael Creg Afful
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Ignore Rumour Mongers Seeking To Destroy BOST-Workers
The Unionised Workers of Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation (BOST) Company Limited are urging Ghanaians to disregard what they described as “obvious politically orchestrated petitions and statements” of wrongdoing being issued by some faceless individuals and circulated on media platforms and some print media, to deliberately bring the reputation of the company as well as the Managing Director into disrepute. According to the unionised workers, those faceless individuals are seeking to satisfy their parochial interest and rather subject the reputation of some of the employees into disgrace. The vanGuard Newspaper reported on Monday, 2nd April, 2019 that there was uneasy calm at BOST because of certain actions of the Managing Director of BOST George Mensah Okley. However, a press statement signed by both the Senior Staff and Local Union Staff of BOST insisted that inasmuch as they are not in the habit of dignifying every faceless statement with a response, they are moved to respond to this because of the conscious efforts of the faceless people to tarnish the image of the Managing Director, Mr. George Mensah Okley. “We want to tell Ghanaians that the Managing Director of BOST; George Mensah Okley is one of the most hardworking, result-driven and fair minded Managing Director to have come to BOST and we the Unionised Staff are fully behind him”, the statement read.
Below Is Full Press Statement Issued By Unionised Staff of BOST:
Press Statement For Immediate Release Ignore Rumour Mongers Seeking To Destroy BOST Our attention has been drawn to a statement from some faceless individuals circulating on some media platforms that seek to deliberately bring the reputation of the company and that of the Managing Director (MD) and some employees into disrepute in order to satisfy their parochial interest. Inasmuch as we are not in the habit of dignifying every faceless statement with a response, we are moved to respond to this because of the conscious efforts of the faceless people to tarnish the image of the MD. We, Unionised Staff of BOST categorically distance ourselves from the obvious politically orchestrated petitions and statements and also urge Ghanaians to equally treat same with the contempt it deserves. We want to tell Ghanaians that the Managing Director of BOST; George Mensah Okley is one of the most hardworking, result-driven and fair minded Managing Director to have come to BOST and we the Unionized Staff are fully behind him. For starters, it takes a rare breed of individual in Ghana to decide to work with people based on their competence and integrity and not one’s political affiliation. Any right thinking person who has the corporate interest of BOST at heart should applaud Mr. George’s exemplary leadership and not condemn him. Mr. Okley has done his best since he took over as MD of BOST. We believe his achievements deserve mention rather than this desperate attempt by these faceless individuals to tarnish his image. A few of his achievements are as follows: 1. Great advancements in securing funding and technical partners to upgrade BOST depots, restoring integrity in our operations at all BOST depots. We expect that this will raise our HSE to global standards. 2. A better and clearer relationship with the Bulk DISTRIBUTING COMPANIES (BDCs) has been established and this has further business to the company thereby giving the company a competitive edge over competitors. A typical example is the execution of through put agreements with almost all BDCs and collection rate of through put fees has increased from 43% to 96%. 3. Strategically, BOST is currently negotiating the purchase of a Depot in the Western Region with a Ghanaian Bank to free some private interests and to have some presence in that part of the country. 4. The acquisition of the VRA depot as a foundation to the petroleum plans in the Western Region. We are also planning on building an LPG network to support the delivery of government’s cylinder Recirculation Model. The success of the restructuring the company’s debts with the MOF will enable this take off soon. 5. The MD has successfully renegotiated and is at the stage of shipping into the country pipelines to refurbish the existing degraded pipeline between Accra plains depot and our transit depot in Akosombo. The contract has been awarded and the project will start within the next couple of weeks. This is a milestone in the history of the company because these pipelines were locked up in Houston, USA for the past ten years and no previous BOST MD was able to do what he has done within his short stay in office. Under our current MD, BOST seeks to forge strong alliances and build confidence with the Banking and investment community. The good news is that we are well on course to achieve this milestone as well with excellent financial practices and compliance with regulations. Following the above policy direction of the company under the leadership of the MD and his competent Board, it is therefore important that Ghanaians, the government and workers at BOST avoid paying attention to rumour mongers in order to give the hardworking MD the peace of mind to carry out the policy that he has initiated. This will serve BOST and Ghana greatly in the long run. SIGN: Senior Staff Chairman Abdul Rahman Senior Staff Secretary Ekow Sey Local Union Chairman Louis Doe Anku Local Union Secretary Peter Akoma Agyarko

Maduro Fires Electricity Minister After Devastating Blackouts

Michael Creg Afful
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Maduro Fires Electricity Minister After Devastating Blackouts
Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro announced that he had replaced the country’s electricity minister amid a string of three nationwide blackouts that sparked protests against the lack of basic services including water supply. Reuters quoted Maduro as saying the new minister is an electrical engineer. This, however, is unlikely to help much with the root causes of the crisis, which some observers have attributed to years of underinvestment in power plants and the grid. Maduro himself blamed the first blackout on the United States, calling it sabotage. The news about the new appointment follows an announcement from earlier this week that electricity will be rationed for at least a month following the third blackout in a month. The rationing, Maduro said, will help the authorities deal with the consequences of the power outages. The blackouts are the latest in a host of woes for the sanction-stricken country. The first one crippled the already ailing economy and paralyzed Venezuela’s oil industry. So did the second one, which shut down the country’s most important oil export terminal, the port of Jose, temporarily suspending vital shipments of oil amid a shrinking client base. This may shrink further as reports emerged last week that Washington was pressuring commodity traders to stop buying Venezuelan crude even if the deals were not in violation of the U.S. sanctions against Venezuela. The country’s oil industry has also suffered from the power outages just when Venezuela needs to export more of its falling production. The blackouts extended from the port of Jose to the four upgraders that process Venezuela’s super heavy crude into a liquid making it fit for exporting. According to a recent Reuters survey , Venezuela’s production fell by 150,000 bpd as a result of the blackouts, adding to an ongoing decline resulting from a lack of maintenance and seriously aggravated by the U.S. sanctions targeting Venezuela’s oil industry specifically as the main revenue generator for the Maduro government. Source: Oilprice.com

(Photos) Peter Amewu tours power projects in Takoradi with journalists

Michael Creg Afful
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(Photos) Peter Amewu tours power projects in Takoradi with journalists
The Ministry of Energy has organized a fact finding trip, to Takoradi in the Western Region with some selected journalists for them to see the ongoing Takoradi -Tema Interconnectivity Gas Project as well as some other projects in the western power enclave. The trip to the project sites follows the shut down of Atuabo Gas Processing Plant for tie-in works for 12 days, which has resulted in a loss of about 300MW of power from the national grid. The completion of the tie-in works would pave way for reverse flow of gas from Ghana Gas to Tema. Critics of the government say the recent power outages are as a result of government’s inability to honour its financial obligation to the Independent Power Producers(IPPs), hence the IPPs inability to procure fuel to keep the plants running. The sector Minister John-Peter Amewu, who led officials of the Ministry first visited the Amandi power at Aboadze, where 192MW power plant is under construction. They also visited Takoradi Regulating and Metering Station, where the tie-in works is ongoing and also the Western Naval Base, where preparation work is underway for the relocation of Karpowership. The team included deputy minister of power Hon. William Owuraku Aidoo, CEO of Ghana Gas Company Dr Ben Asante, CEO of GRIDCo Jonathan Amoako-Baah and CEO of VRA Emmanuel Antwi Darkwa. Hon. John-Peter Amewu who expressed satisfaction about the progress of work noted that the completion of the tie in would ensure stability in power supply. CEO of Ghana Gas Dr Ben Asante in a group picture with ENI Engineers Boaz Lavi, General Manager of Amandi Power CEO of Ghana Gas, Dr Ben Asante This is where Karpowership will be situated

Eskom bags $180m loan from New Development Bank

Michael Creg Afful
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Eskom bags $180m loan from New Development Bank
New Development Bank (NDB) and Eskom signed a loan agreement for renewable energy integration and transmission augmentation project. Under the agreement, the NDB will provide a loan with sovereign guarantee to Eskom with an amount of $180 million. The loan agreement was signed by Xian Zhu, NDB Vice President and Eskom’s Chief Financial Officer Calib Cassim during the 4th Annual Meeting of the New Development Bank in Cape Town, South Africa. The New Development Bank’s Project Finance Facility (PFF) will be used to support the development of grid connection infrastructure, which is vital for the development of renewable energy projects. The PFF will also support renewable energy development and reduce the country’s reliance on fossil fuels. Modern grid connection infrastructure The project will integrate a total of 670MW of renewable energy into the Eskom’s grid. Modern grid connection infrastructure will be used for renewable energy projects and augmentation of the Eskom transmission network to the identified areas. The project will also help increase electricity supply to the targeted areas for sustainable development. The project will enhance the country’s capacity for renewable energy while achieving sustainable growth. It also aligns with the bank’s focus to support projects that aim at developing renewable energy sources. Zhu said: “We are happy to support this important project that will contribute to the development of grid connection infrastructure in South Africa and support the shift to a more sustainable energy path in the country. The project is coherent with the bank’s focus on projects that incorporate sustainability from their inception. “Moreover, we believe that supporting South Africa’s energy sector is fully in line with the Bank’s mandate and our role as a reliable development partner,” he added. Cassim also commented: “The successful conclusion of this inaugural transaction with NDB will significantly contribute towards driving Eskom’s goals to reduce South Africa’s CO2 emissions. “Eskom welcomes the support from NDB and we look forward to fostering a valuable partnership with this organization whose mission is to enhance infrastructure for sustainable development in its member countries.”
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