- Through policy formulation and implementation, Ghana achieved about 85 per cent universal energy access and may export electricity to Nigeria.
- Ghana is exploring grid energy, mini-grid and solar-dominated renewable energy to achieve the country’s universal access to energy by 2024.
Ghana may begin to export electricity to Nigeria once it achieves 100 per cent energy access. Ghana plans to achieve this through adequate plans, policies and programme implementation to grow its power sector further to achieve 100 per cent universal energy. The Head of Generation and Transmission Unit, Ministry of Energy, Ghana, Mr Hanson Monney, stated this yesterday in Lagos while presenting the overview, progress and challenges of his country’s power sector at the 2nd Day of the Nigeria Energy Leadership Summit.
The Energy Ministry official said Ghana has achieved 80 to 85 per cent universal energy access through a robust policy formulation and implementation. He spoke a day after Nigeria, the giant of Africa and largest oil producer in the continent, suffered her second national electricity grid collapse that plunged homes and businesses into total blackout.
With over 200 million population, Nigeria rarely boasts of 5000 megawatts (MW) of power successfully generated, transmitted and distributed since the advent of grid electricity in the country till date. Despite the unbundling and privatisation of Nigeria’s power sector, little improvement has been achieved, thus leaving the majority of the citizens to resort to dangerous alternative energy sources.
However, in Ghana, according to Monney, the government was exploring all options, including grid energy, mini-grid and solar-dominated renewable energy, to achieve the country’s “Universal access to energy by 2024, which the president declared.” He added, “So, we are working on all these things to make sure that the power system of Ghana continues to be as good as it is or even better, and then, maybe, we can be exporting more to our big brothers in Nigeria when the grid finally settles.”