Page 10 - AfrOil Week 37 2022

AfrOil POLICY AfrOil

Ghana’s 2030 LPG consumption

targets unrealistic, marketers warn

GHANA THE Ghanaian government’s goal of having at looked set to decline further in the future.
least half of the population to have access by “There is a decline of almost 11% and that
2030 to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) – a safe, will be impossible for us to achieve that kind of
clean and environmentally friendly fuel source [government] objective. As we speak, LPG con-
– is unrealistic, an industry association official sumption is in a serious decline in Ghana. If you
says. are selling a kilo of LPG for (GHS)11, how do
“We are delighted that the government has you expect to grow?” he told JoyNews.
such an objective, but unfortunately government The Ghanaian National Petroleum Authority
narratives are not in sync with the realities on the is planning to start the the Cylinder Recircula-
ground,” Gabriel Kumi, vice president of the LPG tion Module, an LPG marketing model that is
Marketers Association of Ghana, is quoted by done by filling cylinders at large refilling plants
JoyNews as saying. and then supplying filled ones to consumers as
Kumi was reacting to a statement at the launch special distribution points, in the fourth quarter
of the National LPG Promotion Programme of 2022.
by Deputy Energy Minister William Owuraku The project is aimed at at ensuring that house-
Aidoo, who highlighted major investments in holds that use charcoal and firewood for cooking
the sector in recent years when announcing the adopt the use of cleaner, safer fuels.
2030 target date. Already, a pilot project has taken place in six
Kumi said that, on the contrary, over the past regions. But Kumi said that the policy would
few years, LPG consumption in Ghana had been never markedly increase the consumption rate if
flat – but that it took a nosedive this year and the price of LPG does not go down.™

Nigeria to commercialise gas from oilfields

POLICY NIGERIA’S plan to commercialise gas from the
country’s oilfields is moving ahead, the country’s
Minister for Petroleum Resources has said.
Timipre Sylva, speaking after a meeting on
September 13 with John Kerry, the US Special
Presidential Envoy for Climate, said that the plan
would help cut 15mn tonnes of carbon emissions
from the atmosphere.
In recent years, Nigeria, which is Africa’s
largest economy, has been attempting to collect
the gas being emitted from its oilfields but has agreements signed between the US and Nigeria,
struggled owing to financial constraints. If the worth around $12bn. The deals are part of meas-
gas is commercialised instead of being vented or ures aimed at mitigating global warming and its
flared, it could be used for power generation or consequences.
it could be exported. (See: Nigeria touts multiple Additionally, Sylva suggested that there could
gas export options, page 4) be “some moral basis” for richer countries to
“We are trying to bring down gas flaring. Gas help Nigeria with funding for meeting its climate
flaring commercialisation programme is at an change goals.
advanced stage, which is going to take out about Kerry, for his part, said Nigeria’s decisions on
15mn tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere, curbing gas emissions would affect how other
which is one of our biggest contributions to African countries proceed with their own plans.
global gas emissions,” said Sylva. “I’m here to say that what you decide to do
Estimates have previously suggested that in the future going forward will have a pro-
Nigeria could be losing $1bn per year in revenue found impact on the choices of all countries in
owing to gas flaring, in addition to the pollution Africa. And it will have a profound impact in
that results from the practice. our ability, all of us together, to solve this prob-
Sylva’s announcement follows the news of lem,” he said.™

P10 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 37 15•September•2022