Nigeria can’t supply gas to Ghana, others for power generation – VRA Boss
Controversies and uncertainty appears to be the lot of the hyped West Africa Gas Pipeline (WAGP) project which was to produce and supply Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) for the generation of electricity power to West African countries.
The start date for the project has been changed several times and now countries in the programme particularly Ghana is expressing doubts over Nigeria’s ability to supply the gas. Nigeria is West Africa’s major oil and gas producer and has been chosen under the terms of the project to supply the gas.
The CEO of Ghana’s energy company, the Volta River Authority (VRA) has been quoted by the ThisDay, a Nigerian publication as expressing doubt over the ability of Nigeria to supply gas needed for power generation in three countries under the West African Gas Pipeline Project (WAGPP).
Mr. Kweku Awotwi was speaking at the Ghana Oil Summit held in Accra recently.
He was quoted as saying, “Coming from Nigeria, the West African Gas Pipeline Project has only contracted 123 million standard cubic feet per day and those of you who follow Nigeria know that additional supply of gas – even the supply that is supposed to come this year are in some doubt.”
According to Mr. Awotwi, Ghana would need additional 180 – 200 million standard cubic feet per day of gas to generate additional 800 megawatts of electricity in the next three years.
The government of Ghana had earlier disclosed that the completion of the WAGPP would cost $1 billion instead of the estimated $600 million, representing an increase of 70 per cent, owing to the delay in the implementation of the project, the report said.
When completed, the pipeline will supply natural gas from oil fields in the Niger Delta through the Escravos-Lagos pipeline system to thermal power stations in Benin, Togo and Ghana for electricity generation.
It said the 678 km pipeline, which is being laid mostly offshore, is about 18 to 20 inches in diameter, while the main offshore trunk is being laid on the seabed in 26 to 70 metres water depths at a distance of 15 to 20 kilometres from the shore of all four countries.
The World Bank approved a total of $125 million in guarantees supporting the construction of the 678 km WAGPP to transport natural gas from Nigeria to Benin, Ghana and Togo.
Meanwhile, only last week, a Joy News bulletin quoted Stephen Doku, an engineer with the VRA saying that one of Ghana’s power plants, the Aboadze Thermal Plant has started to generate electricity with gas from Nigeria delivered by the WAGP. He was reported as saying that the VRA has been testing the pipelines for quite some time now and “recently the volume of gas from Nigeria was increased substantially.”
It is not clear what the exact stage the WAGPP is, as the conflicting accounts given by officials do not seem to indicate that. But as the various versions go on, most citizens of the countries who will benefit from the project wait hopefully for cheaper electricity supply.
By Emmanuel K. Dogbevi