AMERI plant handed over to Ghana

The Volta River Authority (VRA), has on behalf of the government, received the Ameri Power plant, at the Aboadze Power Enclave in the Shama District in the Western Region on Thursday January 20.

This means Ghana has taken over full ownership of the 250-megawatt (MW) plant from AMERI Energy.

The plant emerged in 2015 through a Build Own Operate and Transfer (boot) agreement between Government of Ghana represented by the then Ministry of Power led by sector Minister DSr Kwabena Donkor under the Mahama administration, and Africa and Middle East Resources and Investment Group, also konw as Ameri Energy.

The agreement was signed as an emergency power deal to to tackle the power crisis (Dumsor) at the time.

The takeover and the relocation of the plant would rake in about $31 million annually from power export and $4 million as saving on transmission loss cut back, the Ministry of Energy is reported by the state-owned Daily Graphic as saying.

Energy Minister Dr Mathew Opoku Prempeh in a statement read on his behalf by one of his Deputy, Mr William Owuraku Aidoo at the handing over ceremony said the project would also promote the extension of the gas pipeline, which hitherto ended in the Western Region, saying “The presence of natural gas in the region will stimulate other productive non-power uses of our indigenous natural gas resource.”

“We promised to keep the lights on, and the ministry is doing exactly that, despite a few challenges. In achieving this, let me say that the Amandi Power Project — a 200MW Twin City Energy Project — has been completed, achieved commercial operation and dispatching power to the grid,” he added.

The minister indicated that a 50MW grid-connected solar plant at the Bui Hydro Generating Station had also been completed and commissioned.

“We have continued with improvement in the transmission system reliability by implementing other projects. These projects include the Kumasi-Kintampo Lot of the 330KV Kumasi-Bolgatanga Transmission Line Project which is complete and the line has been energised,” he said.