Ghana set to build its biggest power plant since independence - Dr Ato Forson

Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson has announced that the government is building a 1,200-megawatt state-owned gas-fired power plant to provide reliable and affordable electricity for Ghana’s industrial transformation.

When completed, the facility will become Ghana’s biggest power plant, surpassing the 1,020-megawatt Akosombo Hydroelectric Power Station.

Speaking at the Future of Energy Conference 2026, organised by the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP), Dr Forson said reliable and affordable energy was essential to Ghana’s industrial ambitions.

“Ghana is acting by building a 1,200 MW state-owned gas-fired power plant,” he declared.

The Minister placed Ghana’s investment within the broader challenge of energy access and financing across Africa.

“About 600 million Africans lack electricity, yet Africa attracts only around 2 per cent of global clean-energy investment,” he said.

“We cannot industrialise a continent the world considers too risky to power.”

Dr Forson stressed that Africa must create the right conditions to attract greater investment into its energy sector. This, he said, requires efficient utilities, predictable regulation and credible opportunities for private investors.

He acknowledged that major energy projects require substantial long-term financing that governments cannot provide alone.

“In 2025, Africa’s debt-servicing costs were equivalent to more than 85 per cent of the continent’s energy investment. Public budgets cannot carry it alone,” he stated.

The Finance Minister therefore called for guarantees, blended finance, local-currency funding, deeper capital markets and credible public-private partnerships to close Africa’s energy financing gap.

He said Ghana’s proposed 1,200-megawatt power plant demonstrates the government’s determination to secure the reliable and affordable energy needed to power industries, create jobs and drive economic transformation.