Ghana has pledged to make available her expertise, resources, and institutional support in order to ensure the timely and successful execution of the West Africa Power Pool (WAPP) 330 Kilovolt (KV) double circuit Cote d’ivoire-Ghana interconnection reinforcement project.
The objectives of the project are to increase electricity trade between Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire and to improve WAPP network and market operations.
The Chief Director of the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition, Mr Solomon Adjetey Sowah, said this at the opening of a three-day ministerial meeting organised by the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition in Accra yesterday to review the outcomes of the project’s pre-investment studies by the Director General of the utilities and the Directors of the Energy Ministries of Ghana and Cote d’ivoire.
Mr Sowah, who spoke on behalf of the Minister of Energy and Green Transition, Mr John Abdulai Jinapor, cited that conclusions that would be drawn from the meeting would guide the collective decision-making towards the realisation of a strategic interconnection project for the two countries.
“Beyond the technical validation, we are also here to formalise our commitment through the signing of the signing of a legal instrument that will establish a robust framework for cooperation,” Mr Sowah explained.
He further elaborated that the framework, when established would not only facilitate the implementation of the project but would ensure the collaboration between Ghana and Cote d’ivoire towards its implementation was grounded on mutual trust, transparency, and a shared responsibility.
For his part, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo), Mr Mark Awuah Baah, indicated that the WAPP Secretariat, the Cote d’ivoire-Energies (CI-Energies), and GRIDCo began conducting pre-investigation studies for the project in 2011.
However, he stated, that the project was put on hold due to national prioritisation matters but was re-launched in 2022 with support from the World Bank.
In addition, Mr Baah said that an update on the previous studies with regard to the project was carried by Studio Pietrangeli (SP), an Italian Consultant, under the coordination of the WAPP Secretariat in close collaboration with experts from CI-Energies, the Ministry of Mines, Petroleum, and Energy of Cote d’ivoire, and the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition.
The outcomes of the studies, he said, included the construction of a 330 KV double circuit transmission line with a length of approximately 243 km, including 122 km in Cote d’ivoire and 121 km in Ghana, as well as an estimated cost of 154.4 million Euros for the project.
Furthermore, Mr Baah underlined that the outcome of studies found the project technically and financially viable with a controlled impact on the environment.
The General Secretary of the WAPP, Mr Abdoulaye Dia, expressed gratitude to Ghana, under the leadership of President John Dramani Mahama, and previous governments, for supporting the energy programmes of the Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS) and the WAPP.
According to him, such support was needed in ensuring that the implementation of the 330 KV double circuit Cote d’ivoire-Ghana interconnection reinforcement project was a success.
Present at the meeting were representatives from the WAPP, CI-Energies, GRIDCo, Ministry of Energy and Green Transition, and Ministry of Mines, Petroleum, and Energy of Cote D’ivoire.
BY BENJAMIN ARCTON-TETTEY
