Minister for Energy Dr. Mathew Opoku Prempeh reiterated government’s commitment to reducing emissions in the country.
He said transforming the petroleum downstream industry, Ghana’s major contributor to Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, will be critical to mitigating emissions and minimising the impacts of climate change.
According to him, while the need to transition to net-zero GHG emissions is accepted as a collective action necessity, the challenge for most countries in sub-Saharan Africa particularly, has been how to transition and at what rate to avoid disrupting local economies and to mitigate transition risks for developing economies.
He disclosed that Ghana’s Energy Transition Plan outlays a road-map with a national character to decarbonize the energy sector and reach net-zero emissions by 2070 while also ensuring socioeconomic growth and the efficient use of Ghana’s natural resources.
Dr. Prempeh disclosed these at the 2022 Ghana International Petroleum Conference (GhIPCon) in Accra on Wednesday.
He stated that LPG, natural gas, hydrogen gas and biofuels blended with petroleum products are expected to play a major role in Ghana’s energy transition agenda in the petroleum downstream sector and assured that the Ministry is putting in place the necessary fundamentals to ensure its plan moves from an ambition to a reality.
“We recognize that Electric Vehicles (EVs) are the global preferred options to decarbonize the transport sector and phase out fossil-fueled Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles. However, in the interim where the infrastructure for the use of EVs is not fully in place for mass transportation and private use, we believe biofuel blends can reduce emissions from vehicles currently on our roads. With the right policy, the government shall explore the right national fuel blending mandate that is compatible with existing storage, transmission, and transportation infrastructure to hold and deliver fuel.
Apart from the expected positive climate change impacts, government expects to also foster the requisite market conditions to support new or nascent industries which will emerge from such a policy action.”
He disclosed that to consolidate government’s efforts to increase LPG penetration to at least 50% of Ghanaians by 2030, the Ministry is pursuing a new programme dubbed the LPG for Development (LPG4D).
The key components of the Plan, he said, are the implementation of the Cylinder Recirculation Model (CRM) and a new National LPG Promotion Programme (NLPGPP) which has been duly launched.
“The CRM, under the auspices of the NPA, is expected to increase access to LPG and ensure safe delivery to end users,” he said.
The Minister indicated that notwithstanding the major strides to make the transition to cleaner fuels, financing climate adaptation and mitigating actions remain a concern.
According to him, US$100 billion in grant funding for Africa’s climate actions promised by the developed countries, continues to be aspirational, as it is yet to materialize.
He however stressed that the path ahead is very promising if collectively the continent resolves to take the following steps: Enforce the implementation of regional policies and regulatory frameworks; Improve refinery capacity to produce high-quality fuels to reduce GHG emissions; Africa governments to support deep carbonization technology at the company and industry level; and introduce circular economy as an alternative to linear economy.
The Minister assured Ghana’s commitment both to an energy transition agenda and the development of its petroleum industry, including the downstream sector.
The way forward, he said, is to strike an important and fair balance between the two without compromising the determination to maximize the benefits needed for industrialization.
