SUSTAINABLE ENERGY SUPPLY: THE CASE OF GHANA

GABRIEL FIOSSI ASSAGBAMATRIKEL NO. 9027395TO PROF. DR. GÜNTER KLEIN

CONTENT

• BRIEF HISTORY OF GHANA• ENERGY DEMANDS OF GHANA• WHERE WE ARE• IMPACTS OF UNAVAILABLE POWER• POTENTIAL OF RENEWABLES IN GHANA• CURRENT STATUS OF RE POLICIES IN GHANA• SOME SUCCESSES• EXPECTED IMPACTS OF INVESTMENT IN RENEWABLE ENERGY• REFERENCES

BRIEF HISTORY OF GHANA

ENERGY DEMANDS OF GHANA• Electricity in Ghana is a key determinant of the country’s continued

economic growth, but supply has recently struggled to keep up with demand. Sustained demand growth of over 6 percent per year has strained the already overburdened electricity system. A major power crisis in 2006–7 is estimated to have reduced GDP growth by one percent.

• Over the last two decades the demand for electricity has been growing by 10-15 percent annually. The expanding commercial and industrial sectors are, together with the high population growth, the main drivers of electricity demand. Current demand forecasts project that electricity demand will continue to grow at least seven percent per year.

Generating Station/Plant Nameplate Capacity, MW

Dependable Capacity, MW

Hydro    Akosombo 1,020 900Kpong 160 140Bui 400 342Thermal    TAPCO 378 300TICO 252 200TT1PP 126 110TT2PP 49.5 45

MRP 85 80T3 132 120Sunon-Asogli 220 180CENIT 126 110EMBEDDED GENERATION    Genser Power-IPP 5 2.1RENEWABLE    

Solar 2.5 1.9Total 2,956.0 2,531.0

IMPACTS OF UNAVAILABLE POWER

• Much like its neighbour Nigeria, Ghana is currently experiencing an energy crisis, leaving the majority of its population without or with limited access to power.

• This has approximately cost the economy of Ghana more than US$320 million annually as at 2008

• There is also considerable costs in terms of damage to appliances and the waste of food, and compromises public safety in the delivery of health care services, often with tragic consequences and the greater the technology penetration into economic activities, the greater the economic losses. Direct costs to utilities, among other things, include cost of repairing damaged equipment, process restart costs; generation revenue losses, and reduced equipment's life span.

AND IT ATTENDANT CITIZEN DEMONSTRATIONS AND MEDIA SPACE DISCUSSIONS

COSTING OF RE PARALLEL TO ECONOMIC COSTS OF UNAVAILABLE POWER

Cost of Unavailable power : $2.2 million/dayi.e. $2.2m * 365 days = $803m

But Ghana needs $329 million a year to bridge the gap of electricity supply in terms of Renewable energy in the short to medium term

This contributes between 6 – 10 percent in generation capacity of electricity as well as make Ghana a net exporter of energy from Renewables alone.This is less than how much Ghana pays to the West African Gas Pipeline Limited for gas supply to power our thermal plants.

POTENTIAL OF RENEWABLES IN GHANA• Hydropower PotentialThe prospect of harnessing the hydropower potential of small rivers in Ghana has been investigated for many years, and many potential mini-hydropower sites have been identified.As to when actual construction and harnessing of this source will happen is yet to be determined

SOLAR ENERGY POTENTIAL• Ghana is endowed with important solar

energy potentials across the country. The daily rates of solar radiations vary from 4 to 6 kWh/m2. Areas with the highest levels of radiation are widespread throughout the northern region, which represents over 60% of the national area. The annual length of sun presence varies between 1,800 and 3,000 hours.

• Relevant potentials for grid connection for rural villages and off-grid applications exist along the country. 

WIND ENERGY POTENTIAL

• Preliminary evaluations of wind power took place and are exerted in selected sites, especially along the coasts. In particular, sites with good wind speeds are located in the eastern coast. The gross wind potential is about 5,600 MW.

• Infrastructures in the country such as streets, electric grids and loading centres coincide with most of the areas where these wind platforms have been identified.

CURRENT STATUS OF RENEWABLE POLICIES

Ghana was a signatory of the Sustainable Development Goals also called the Agenda 2030.Goal 7 talks about Clean Energy

Ghana in itself also have laws passed and plans adopted to guide our direction in the desire to give affordable, reliable energy to its citizens.They include:The Strategic National Energy Plan (SNEP) completed in 2006The National Energy Policy (Completed in 2010)The Energy Sector Strategy and Development plan (Building on the SNEP, Completed in 2010)The Renewable Energy Law (Adopted by Act 832 in 2011)

SOME SUCCESSES

• VRA 2.5MW Solar PV Plant• Capacity of Plant: 2.5MW• Energy production since April 2013 to

Dec 2013 – 2,672MWh• Ave. Daily Production – 9,500kWh• Land Size: 3.4 hectares• Installed cost US$3.99/Wp• LCOE US$0.2413/kWh• Module cost at contract award

(2012): US$1.4/Wp• Current Module Cost (Dec 2013):

US$0.89/Wp• Gazetted Feed-in-Tariff: US$0.20/kWh

• 19 solar PV plants (distributed generation) net metering

• Current Feed-in-Tariff: US$0.20/KWh

• Non Res User tariff > 600KWh/month: GHs 0.83 (US$0.33/KWh)

• 50kWp solar park at the Ministry of Energy for instance accounts for 12 - 15% energy consumption

EXPECTED IMPACTS IN INVESTMENT IN RENEWABLE ENERGY

EXPECTED EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

• Recent conversion of six Ghanaian Polytechnics into Technical Universities (March, 2016)

• This can help in training human resource for management and professionals for the Renewable energy through Curriculum development and training.

• This reduces unemployment among the youth (Green Jobs)

• YEA fund ($20 million) for young entrepreneurs

• A commitment of part of fund for entrepreneurs interested in going into the Renewable Energy sector

• Part of SADA fund being invested into Renewable energy for the Northern regions in alleviating poverty

REFERENCES• Energy Commission (2014) Energy (Supply and Demand) Outlook for Ghana, April 2014. Foster, Vivien and Nataliya Pushak, Ghana’s

Infrastructure: Continental Perspective, Washington, DC: World Bank Policy Research Paper No. 5600, 2011.• World Bank, (2011) Energizing Economic Growth in Ghana: Making the Power and Petroleum Sectors Rise to the Challenge, Energy Group

Africa Region.• Boateng, E. A. (1966) a Geography of Ghana 2nd Edition, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.• Government of Ghana (GOG) (2010) Budget statement for the year 2008 Ghana Official Portal [Online] accessed at 

http://Ghana.gov.gh/Ghana/budget_statements.jsp on 19th April 2016.• Duku M, H. and Hagan E, B. (2011) A comprehensive review of biomass resources and bio fuels potential in Ghana. Renewable Sustainable

Energy Review (15) 404–15.• Ghana Energy Commission (2011) Energy supply and demand outlook for Ghana: Ghana Energy Commission.• USAID (1999) an energy roadmap of Ghana: from crisis to the fuel for economic freedom. A report by the US Government Interagency

Team.• Brew-Hammond A, Kemausour F (2007) Energy crisis in Ghana: drought, technology or policy. Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and

Technology (KNUST), Ghana.• Victor, L., (2008) Systematic reviewing. Social Science Update, 58: 1-4.• Akobeng, A. K., (2005) Understanding systematic review and data analysis. Achieves of Disease in Childhood, 90(6), 845-848.• Victor, L., (2008) Systematic reviewing. Social Science Update, 58: 1-4.• Khan, K. S., Kunz, R., Kleijnen, J., and Antes, D., (2003) Five steps to conducting a systematic review. Journal of the Royal Society of

Medicine,96(3), 118-121.• World Economic Forum (2014) The Global Energy Architecture Performance Index Report.• USG-GoG Technical Team, August (2011) World Bank, Energizing Economic Growth in Ghana: Making the Power and Petroleum Sectors Rise

to the Challenge, Energy Group Africa Region.