The Minister of Energy, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, has underscored natural gas as a pivotal resource for fueling extensive industrialization in Africa and narrowing the poverty divide with the global community.
According to Dr. Opoku Prempeh, African governments must play a pivotal role in financing the development of natural gas resources to ensure their sustainability.
He advocated mobilizing funds through local financial institutions and collaborative efforts among African nations.
During the Gas Day session of the Nigeria International Energy Summit on February 29, the Energy Minister proposed leveraging the African Energy Bank, supported by Ghana and expected to be headquartered there.
This bank could secure competitive financing for accelerated natural gas projects, research and development infrastructure, and processing, transportation, and transformation of natural resources.
Dr. Opoku Prempeh highlighted Africa’s substantial gas reserves, led by Nigeria with over 200 trillion cubic feet, and others like Mozambique, Angola, Senegal, and Cameroon in the sub-Saharan region.
Ghana, actively exploring and developing its oil and gas resources sustainably, anticipates ongoing investment in natural gas infrastructure over the next decade.
The Energy Minister stressed the importance of adequate infrastructure for processing, storage, transportation, and transformation of natural gas resources to meet market demands.
He commended initiatives such as Dangote’s 650,000 barrels per day oil refinery and petrochemical complex in Nigeria, along with Ghana’s recent commissioning of a hundred barrels per day oil refinery.
Ongoing projects in Ghana, including the Tema LNG Terminal and the Tema City Gate and Gas Distribution Pipeline Network, contribute to expanding refining capacity.
Ghana envisions Nigeria as a primary supplier of affordable and reliable gas, complementing domestic sources and the West African Gas Pipeline.
Dr. Opoku Prempeh also highlighted the potential impact of the Nigeria to Morocco pipeline, stimulating gas patronage and expanding the gas market across the continent, especially in countries along the pipeline route.
“We can leverage the African Energy Bank which Ghana is supporting and whose headquarters Ghana expects to host, to raise competitive financing for the faster development of natural gas projects and the development of infrastructure for research and development, and for processing, transportation and transformation of our natural resources,” he said.
“In the next decade, we can expect to see continued investment in natural gas infrastructure such as pipelines, liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals, power plants and petrochemical establishments on the continent, which present a unique opportunity for Africa to take charge of its own destiny,” he added.
He continued: “As indicated earlier, infrastructure development is key in fulfilling the massive untapped potential the resource presents. There has to be adequate infrastructure for processing, storage, transportation and transformation of natural gas resources to meet the market demands. In this regard, the initiative of Dangote to build the 650,000 barrels per day oil refinery and a petrochemical complex here in Nigeria is laudable.
“In Ghana, we recently commissioned a hundred barrels per day oil refinery to increase our refining capacity and have plans in place to further increase our refining capacity in the near future. Other on-going projects include Tema LNG Terminal and the Tema City Gate and Gas Distribution Pipeline Network.”
“The execution of the Nigeria to Morocco pipeline will also stimulate the patronage of gas and expand the gas market on the Continent, especially in countries along the pipeline route,” he adds.