Accra: The Deputy Minister for Energy and Green Transition, Richard Gyan-Mensah, has expressed support for Ghana and other African countries to invest in nuclear energy. He articulated his views during the opening ceremony of the 60th Annual General Meeting of the Association of Power Utilities of Africa (APUA).
According to Ghana Web, Gyan-Mensah highlighted the importance of strong financial models, sound technical structures, and cooperation among stakeholders to ensure energy sustainability across Africa. He emphasized the potential advantages of nuclear energy, such as clean energy production, high reliability, and improved energy density, and expressed his anticipation for the Volta River Authority (VRA) to explore nuclear energy production.
The event, hosted by the VRA in collaboration with the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), the Bui Power Authority (BPA), and the Ghana Grid Company (GridCo), attracted leaders and experts from Africa's power sector. The theme for the gathering focused on accelerating Africa's electricity market integration and advancing regulatory readiness.
Gyan-Mensah praised the Mahama administration for addressing the energy sector's $1.4 billion legacy debt and reinstating the $500 million World Bank guarantee for the Sankofa Project. He also highlighted the government's efforts to enhance the Cash Waterfall Mechanism.
The Deputy Minister stressed the importance of digitalisation and advanced technology in reducing costs and improving the reliability and sustainability of power generation. He noted Ghana's willingness to share its successful experiences and financial models with other countries while learning from them as well.
Ghana currently boasts over 5,000 megawatts (MW) of installed generation capacity, with dependable capacity exceeding 4,700 MW. Gyan-Mensah also pointed out the increase in solar power generation and urged entities like ECG and the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo) to continue enhancing electricity access and grid stability.