Ghana expects to sign at least six new petroleum agreements with international oil companies by the first quarter of 2027 as it seeks to attract investment and reverse years of falling crude production.
Energy and Green Transition Minister Dr John Abdulai Jinapor said negotiations with Eni, Vitol, Shell, Chevron, Petrobras and ExxonMobil were progressing. He said the agreements would help restore Ghana’s position as a leading destination for petroleum investment.
Speaking at the Petroleum Commission’s 2026 Local Content Conference and Exhibition in Takoradi on Wednesday, November 10, 2026, Dr Jinapor said the government was pursuing an “aggressive programme” to revive the upstream sector and create more opportunities for indigenous companies.
The conference marks the 15th anniversary of the Petroleum Commission and is being held under the theme: “Enriching Local Content for Sustainable Growth: Building a Resilient Upstream Sector Through Reform and Partnership to Spur Competitiveness and Investment.”
Dr Jinapor said local content should not be viewed simply as a regulatory obligation or a target percentage. He described it as a means of driving economic transformation, transferring technology, creating jobs and developing Ghanaian companies capable of competing internationally.
Ghanaians now account for approximately 90 per cent of the upstream petroleum workforce, while the value of local content has risen from about $227 million in 2024 to $450 million.
Although he welcomed that progress, the minister said Ghana needed to maintain the momentum by expanding exploration and increasing output. Crude production has declined steadily since 2020, falling from a peak of approximately 71 million barrels a year to about 37 million barrels.
That reduction has affected economic activity in Takoradi, which previously benefited significantly from business linked to the petroleum industry.
The government of President John Dramani Mahama has introduced measures intended to rebuild investor confidence through policy certainty, predictability and an improved regulatory framework. Dr Jinapor said Ghana was now recording its first reversal in the production decline for six years, with daily output rising from approximately 90,000 barrels to about 122,000 barrels.
However, he said halting the decline was not enough. The government’s wider aims are sustainable production growth, reserve replacement and long-term investment.
The Ebano-Afoma field, the Pecan field and the deepwater Keta prospects are among the commercially viable discoveries being prioritised for development. The government also supports the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation’s proposed Haimenber project and efforts to bring marginal fields into production.
Gas expansion and new exploration
Dr Jinapor identified natural gas as central to Ghana’s energy security, industrialisation and transition to a cleaner energy system. The government is working with companies including Tullow Oil and Eni to increase domestic production, which has reached approximately 400 million standard cubic feet per day.
Greater gas availability has reduced Ghana’s annual light crude oil imports from six cargoes to two. The government intends to end those imports entirely by next year, a move it says could save approximately $500 million a year through import substitution.
Using more domestic gas should also extend the operating life of power plants and support Ghana’s environmental commitments. Work is under way with partners to begin construction of a third gas processing plant, with the groundbreaking ceremony planned for the following month.
The minister also welcomed a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) and Eni, describing the associated gas sales agreement as an important development for the energy sector.
Ghana is competing with other African oil-producing countries for increasingly scarce global exploration capital. Dr Jinapor said the country could no longer depend solely on its petroleum potential to attract investors.
The government is therefore intensifying discussions with international oil companies and reviewing the Petroleum Exploration and Production Act, 2016 (Act 919), to improve the competitiveness of its investment framework.
He called for flexibility during negotiations, saying the government should assess the total value of proposed investments and their potential returns rather than concentrate only on percentage participation. Larger investments, he argued, could provide greater national benefits even when the state’s percentage share was smaller.
But he said signing agreements would not itself represent success. The real test would be exploration, discoveries, field development and job creation.
The GNPC and ExploCore have completed the award of a drilling contract for exploration in the Voltaian Basin, with drilling expected to begin within the coming weeks and months. Dr Jinapor said the project would help Ghana expand exploration beyond offshore resources and assess its onshore potential.
He expressed optimism that successful discoveries in the basin could open a new chapter for the country’s petroleum industry.
The minister also warned international oil companies not to pursue projects without ensuring meaningful involvement from Ghanaian businesses and communities. He said local content was not only about adding economic value but also about protecting the security and long-term sustainability of investments.
Communities that feel included in resource development and receive tangible benefits are more likely to support industry operations, he said.
Dr Jinapor commended President Mahama’s decision to direct petroleum revenues into the government’s Big Push infrastructure programme, saying this would make the use of oil revenue more visible to Ghanaians.
He urged industry stakeholders to use increased production, new exploration, domestic gas development and the commercialisation of discoveries to build a resilient petroleum sector.
The government’s objective, he said, was to ensure investment created opportunities, those opportunities strengthened Ghanaian capabilities, and local expertise contributed to lasting national prosperity.
He congratulated the Petroleum Commission on its 15th anniversary and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to supporting investment, increasing indigenous participation and ensuring Ghana’s petroleum resources deliver sustainable benefits to the population.
