Ghana will require an investment of US$1bn to develop renewable energy resources in the next eight years, according to the country’s Energy Ministry
Seth Mahu, deputy director at the ministry, said, “Policies are in place to exploit the country’s energy potential in solar, biomass, wind, as well as mini-hydro. We are looking at both Ghanaian and non-Ghanaian private sector operators for partnering with the government to develop these resources.”
Ghana has experienced more than three months of electricity cuts after a natural-gas pipeline off the coast of Togo was damaged by a ship. The pipe supplied gas for power from Nigeria to Benin, Togo and Ghana.
Energy minister Joe Oteng-Adjei had said in September that the damage to the gas pipeline curbed power supplies by about 300MW.
According to figures from Ghana’s ministry, the current 2,443MW capacity reached nearly 72 per cent of the population.
Mahu said, “The renewable-energy investments will add 500MW of power to the nation’s capacity and help expand electricity provision to all parts of the country, especially in isolated areas.”
Edward Bawa, a spokesman for the ministry, informed recently that Ghana has almost 10,000 solar-panel installations in communities that don’t have access to the national power grid.
“We are doing a test run of wind-energy installations in the central region,” he said, referring to the southern area that borders the capital city region.
