Ghana's Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has announced plans by the government to transition from the use of fossil fuel to renewable energy by 2070.

To that end, Dr Bawumia has called on stakeholders in the energy sector to accelerate the production and utilisation of oil and gas reserves in Ghana.

Dr Bawumia was speaking at the official opening of the 5th Edition of the Ghana International Petroleum Conference (GhIPCon), in Accra on Wednesday, 28 September 2022.

“Let me add that Ghana has set a target of 2070 to fully transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy. So, even though, as a government, we are fully committed to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2070, we also have to take steps to accelerate the production and utilisation of our oil and gas reserves".

“What this means is that even though we want to contribute to reducing emissions, we are of the view that a balance must be struck and maintained in the context of our social, economic, and environmental requirements.”

“So, fossil fuels, particularly natural gas will continue to be part of Ghana’s energy mix in the short term, whilst strategies will be put in place to increase the share of renewable energy in the mix from medium to long term,” Dr Bawumia said.

For his part, the Chief Executive of the National Petroleum Authority, Dr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, reiterated the government’s commitment to reduce petrol emissions.

“We, at the NPA, are committed to supporting the government’s agenda in reducing the emissions from the energy products we consume in Ghana and I’m glad to mention we were the first west African country to reduce sulphur content in transport and industrial fuels from a maximum of 5000ppm to a maximum of 50ppm” he stated.

The three-day conference is on the theme “Energy Transition in the African Petroleum Downstream Context: Prospects, Challenges and the Way Forward”.

The conference is being organised by the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) in collaboration with the African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA) under the auspices of the Ministry of Energy and the Ghana Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors (CBOD).

It has attracted major players including CEOs, experts and decision-makers in the petroleum sector across the West Africa Sub Region.