President John Dramani Mahama has instructed the Petroleum Commission and other state agencies to secure reliable crude oil and gas supplies for the refineries and petrochemical plants planned as part of the US$28 billion second phase of the Petroleum Hub at Jomoro.
Speaking at the opening of the 15th Local Content Conference and Exhibition in Takoradi on Tuesday, November 10, Mr Mahama said the project reflected the government’s intention to connect oil production directly with domestic industrial development.
“Our petroleum resources can support a much wider industrial economy. That is the purpose of linking upstream production with domestic refining, gas processing and petrochemical manufacturing,” he said.
The President also announced the Nya Gyidie-1X gas and condensate discovery during the event.
He said the agreement for the hub’s second phase, signed between the Petroleum Hub Development Corporation (PHDC) and a consortium led by Global Sphere, was central to Ghana’s ambition to become a regional centre for refined petroleum and petrochemical products.
“The US$28 billion agreement between the PHDC and a consortium led by Global Sphere for Phase Two forms part of our efforts to position Ghana as a regional hub for refined petroleum and petrochemical products,” he added.
Mr Mahama directed the Petroleum Commission to work with the PHDC and upstream operators to “arrange a reliable feedstock supply for the Hub’s refineries and petrochemical plants”. The instruction also applies to upstream companies.
He said Ghana’s crude oil production had recovered to more than 120,000 barrels per day. Energy and Green Transition Minister John Abdulai Jinapor described local content as the measure of whether the petroleum sector’s recovery was translating into wider economic benefits.
What the agreement covers
The agreement was signed in Accra on Monday, October 19, by PHDC Chief Executive Toni Aubynn and Boubacar Belco Bah on behalf of investors and technical partners from South Korea, Mali and the United Arab Emirates.
The consortium is led by UAE-based Global Sphere and will operate under a build-own-operate model.
Lot Two includes a 300,000 barrels-per-stream-day refinery, two petrochemical plants, a multi-berth jetty and storage facilities with capacity for four million cubic metres. The developments are planned for Jomoro in the Western Region.
PHDC expects the project to be completed within five years, with construction-related activity scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2027, subject to the conditions precedent set out in the agreement.
However, financing for the project has not yet been completed. At the signing, Mr Bah warned that the agreement itself would not be the final measure of progress.
“Ultimately, our success will be measured not by the agreement we sign today, but by the commitments we honour and the results we achieve together,” he said.
He added that equity participation, long-term debt and risk-mitigation arrangements were still being put together.
The project site is also still being assembled. PHDC said in June that it was acquiring 5,000 hectares for the development, while Mr Jinapor said he would work with other ministers to fulfil the government’s obligations.
The conference also heard about seven proposed changes to Ghana’s petroleum fiscal regime, aimed at attracting investment back into the upstream sector.
