Veep inspects work on the CEN power project

Ghana’s thermal energy would be given a boost of an additional 350 megawatts in September 2017 when the CEN POWER project in Kpong is completed.

This was made known when the Vice President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur on Wednesday 20th April 2016, unveiled a tunnel boring machine and inspected ongoing works at the CEN Power project, which is at 42 percent of completion stage.

The Vice President last year cut the sod for work to start on the 350 Megawatts Independent Power Plant by CEN Power Generation Company limited.

The boring tunnel machine when installed would drill and lay a 1.2 km pipe that would cool the plant when completed.

The Vice President, addressing journalists after the inspection, stated that currently the country needs about 20 percent of energy reserve to be in the comfortable position in order to get a consistent power supply. Something that government is working very hard to achieve.

He reaffirmed government’s continuous support to see the future of Ghana’s energy stability, so that it will help the country’s economy. According to him, looking into the future energy and power stability increment would help service the economic future of the country.

He said because of the increasing rate of demand for energy, the government remained mindful of the need to encourage more independent power producers to participate in power production to complement government's efforts and lauded CEM Power for being part of the success story of providing a power plant with the capacity of 350 MW in Ghana.

Mr Kwesi Amissah Arthur commended CEN Power for using local content as the basis to creating employment for the people in the area.

He urged them to continue to provide skills training for their local staff, to bring them to the required level they want, rather than bringing in expatriates.

According to Mr. Amissah Arthur, currently there are 16 power generation projects in the country and are near completion, so with improved capacity in the power sector business would improve and also create more jobs especially for the youth in the country.

He said the introduction of the tunnel to bring machines was also laudable since it will bring technology transfer for the technology vacuum for pipeline laying for Ghanaian companies so that it would benefit the country.

On his part Nana Sam Brew Butler, Chairman of Cen power generation, said this is the very first BOOT Power project and the current owner have agreed to transfer it to ECG i.e. State of Ghana, at the expiration date of its 20 year PPA, for one US dollar even though the plant would have life of another 10 to 15 years.

He said the project has ensured that it would not compromise on government's policy of domestic participation and transfer of technology and assured government of reasonable local participation in the construction works at various levels.

According to him the project when completed will incorporate a collector substation to serve other stations in the energy enclave, a Substation that would eventually be transferred to GRIDCO and also has three inbuilt cost cover for these types of fuel.

Mr. Butler said the source of initial fuel (three months storage) will be on site as well as Adinkra, located next door owned by Chase and Vitol.

This initiative he said means that the state would not be burdened with any arduous responsibility of importing fuel for its operations and the plant will not shut down because of lack of fuel.

The ceremony was graced by Hon Nii Laryea Afotey-Agbo, the Greater Accra regional minister, Kpone Mantse Nii Tetteh and other executives, the executives of Sumitomo Corporation from Japan and Cen Power Generation Limited of Ghana Standard bank, IFC and other captains of the industry.