By Toyin Akinosho
The Ghanaian government is planning to build a pipeline to connect the Wet African Gas Pipeline (WAGP) in Takoradi, in the country’s western coast, to the “Power Plant Cluster” in Tema. It will also build an alternative pipeline from the country’s gas fields to the same cluster.
Government owned Ghana Gas Company is operating a gas plant (Atuabo) that processes 80Million standard cubic feet per day (MMscf/d) of gas from Tullow operated Jubilee and pumps the molecules through a pipeline to power plants in Takoradi.
Eastwards, Tema Thermal Power Complex provides 126MW to the national grid and with other power plants in the cluster, could provide up to 300MW, but it neither receives gas from Jubilee, nor the epileptic supplies that come from Nigeria through the WAGP. In place of gas, the plant is fired by expensive diesel.
Officials told the Gas Forum in Accra this week that the Gas Master Plan was being finalised and will be presented to cabinet for approval in the “coming weeks”.
Once cabinet approves the plan, the ministry will develop a Gas Policy and Gas Act that will provide a transparent regulatory framework for the industry, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, Minister for Petroleum, declared.
He explained that gas sector regulations are expected to help address infrastructure and funding issues, institutional mandates for gas sector agencies, as well as to provide a revised gas pricing policy that will reflect the country’s “developmental priorities”.
The forum learned that another gas processing plant, aside from the Atuabo Gas plant, will be required to deal with expected flows from ‘Greater Jubilee’ and the TEN project among others.
Greater Jubilee involves a full field development, which is on course is to commence production in 2018 – with recoverable reserves of about 60million barrels and about 100billion cubic feet of non-associated gas.
