- The United States and Russia have entered the competition to build Ghana’s first nuclear power plant.
- Ghana is turning to nuclear power to complement its existing hydro, thermal, and renewable energy mix.
The United States and Russia have entered the competition against China, France, and South Korea to build Ghana’s first nuclear power plant.
The West African country is among several on the continent that are looking to nuclear power as a low-carbon energy source to broaden access to electricity.
Stephen Yamoah, executive director of Nuclear Power Ghana, which is supervising the project, said Ghana is turning to nuclear power to complement its existing hydro, thermal, and renewable energy mix. Outgoing president Nana Akufo-Addo will announce the winner of the ongoing bidding process at the end of 2024.
Yamoah said the target of building the plant by 2030 would be missed because “we still haven’t settled on a vendor.” Construction, expected to last five years, will begin in 2026.
Ghana is projecting that nuclear energy will make up 5 per cent of the country’s energy mix by 2030 and 35 per cent by 2070, according to Dr. Robert Sogbadzie, deputy director of power at the Ministry of Energy. “Every country is coming in based on its proposal,” he said, stressing that the cost and technology used will be the determining factors, rather than solely politics.