- Norway will support Ghana in developing its renewable energy capacity, using the private sector as the main driver.
- The Director of Research Statistics and Information Management of the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Cephas Adjei Mensah, said Ghana’s decision to draw on Norway’s expertise had been strategic and beneficial.
Norway will support Ghana in developing its renewable energy capacity, using the private sector as the main driver. The renewed focus of its political agenda for Ghana follows the end of its assistance in developing its upstream oil and gas industry when Ghana discovered oil in commercial quantities in 2007.
“While the Oil for Development Programme is being discontinued, access to energy remains high on our political agenda, but the focus will be on renewable energy,” the Norwegian Ambassador to Ghana, Ingrid Mollestad, said at a programme in Accra yesterday.
Norway’s Oil for Development Programme, established in 2005, has been instrumental in helping developing nations such as Ghana manage their petroleum resources effectively and responsibly.
Ms Mollestad pointed out that much as the Oil for Development programme was coming to an end, there was still considerable scope for continuing partnership with Ghana on the management of natural resources, stressing that the two countries were both coastal states and sustainable management of ocean resources was crucial for their future prosperity.
She said that despite concerns over the petroleum sector’s contribution to climate change, they were aware that oil and gas would continue to play an important role in many countries, including Ghana, for many years to come.
The Director of the Petroleum Directorate of the Ministry of Energy, James Yamoah, mentioned some of the significant outcomes of the Oil for Development programme, including Ghana’s ability to establish a robust legal and administrative framework for the petroleum sector.
These include updated laws, regulations and policies that clearly define the roles and responsibilities of key institutions.
He added that a significant achievement of the partnership had been the creation of the Petroleum Commission, which he explained had been pivotal in separating regulatory functions from the commercial activities of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation, leading to a more transparent and efficient system.
“ Norway has also been instrumental in strengthening Ghana’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to oversee the environmental aspects of the oil and gas operation.
Additionally, the collaboration has helped Ghana design a fiscal framework that ensures the government receives a fair share of petroleum revenue while managing an attractive investment environment for international partners,” he said.
The Director of Research Statistics and Information Management of the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Cephas Adjei Mensah, said Ghana’s decision to draw on Norway’s expertise had been strategic and beneficial.