Ghana now has a national petroleum strategic reserve of a built-up stock level of two weeks at a value of 18 million dollars to serve as a buffer in times of shortages.
Plans are being put in place to build an ultimate target of six weeks of petroleum stock by 2007, Dr Paa Kwasi Nduom, Minister of Energy announced this at the meet-the-press series in Accra on Tuesday.
Dr Nduom said since it was only an abundant and cheap energy that would provide the fuel to power both the private and public sector engines, the government was making every effort to ensure that there was sufficient energy to run activities to make the economy grow.
He said the Ministry, being aware of the importance of the energy sector has currently put in place various strategies and programmes to supply the domestic demand that would lead Ghana to become a net exporter of power and fuel in the next five years.
He said, for instance, the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation (BOST) petroleum deposits would be expanded in Kumasi, Accra plains and Takoradi, with the Buipe and Bolgatanga pipeline to be constructed to support an all year round products transfer from Akosombo to Buipe. He said other sources of energy and fuel such as the bio-diesel initiative and the solar systems were being given a boost as alternative power supply.
In the case of the solar system, the Minister announced that 140 junior secondary school buildings would be connected with the solar system next year to enable the students to be able to study at night.
Dr Nduom mentioned various power sub-sector actions being undertaken by the Ministry such as the refurbishment of the Akosombo generating station under the Retrofit project, which was to be completed in 2005 at a cost of 100 million dollars, the 25 million-dollar Kpone retrofit project to be completed by 2007 and the efficiency and availability improvement project of the Volta River Authority Aboadze thermal plant that would be carried out next year at the cost of 10 million dollars.
He said such and other projects have been designed to ensure that Ghana remained self-sufficient in her power requirements for a very long time.
On challenges facing the energy sector, Dr Nduom mentioned financial and technical issues, adding that in the petroleum sub-sector, the key challenge was the financial viability of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) which has called for the setting up of deregulation programme and operational efficiency project that would require TOR to operate with high standards comparable to those in the advanced world. He said the TOR debt has currently reduced with a daily recovery rate of eight billion cedis.
He said under the power sector, the challenges were both financial and technical with the financial issues constraining the ability of Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and the VRA to deliver services reliably.
On the West African Power pool arrangement, which is under the West African Gas Pipeline, Dr Nduom said Ghana has 16.3 per cent equity in the project at the cost of 90 million dollars and that cabinet has approved two documents on the project, which would be ratified by Parliament soon.
