Mills to hold discussions with Yar'Adua on gas supply

Tema, June 17, GNA - President John Evans Atta Mills is due in Nigeria on Friday to hold discussions with Nigerian President Omar Yar' Adua on a wide range of issues including the availability of gas from Nigeria to Ghana.

He said Government wanted to ensure adequate water and energy supply as well as an effective utilization of gas to prevent the economy from grinding to a halt.

President Mills made the announcement on Wednesday when he visited the site of Sunon Asogli Power (Ghana) Limited, at Kpone, near Tema. The Sunon Asogli Power (Ghana) Limited is a joint power plant project between the Shezen Energy Investment Company Limited and the China Africa Development Fund (CADF), the Strategic African Securities of Ghana in co-operation with a Ghanaian business entrepreneur Togbe Afede XIV, who is also a traditional ruler.

The gas-stream combined cycle power generation project has a total investment of US$143 million.

It is one of the first batches of projects financed by the CADF under a special fund set up in June 2007 by the Chinese government to encourage Chinese enterprises to expand investment in Africa and promote the continent's economic expansion.

The project was designed to have an initial capacity of 200 megawatts by the end of 2008, and 560 megawatts in total in the future, but production is yet to commence due to the lack of supply of gas. The project is expected to substantially supplement power supply in Ghana, which has had a history of periodic but prolonged power outages, and where demand for electricity is projected to grow by six per cent annually in the next 10 years.

Ghana also needs about 5,000 megawatts of power in the medium term. President Mills said Government also wanted to develop the gas deposits at Efasu in the Western Region.

He commended the company for providing jobs and imparting technology, with an assurance that Government would give the fullest cooperation.

President Mills also advised the workers and management to form a symbiotic relationship that would ensure industrial harmony. Mr Shuan Lee, the Chairman of the Company and Togbe Afede took the President round.