Government is targeting the procurement of 1,200 megawatts (MW) of combined-cycle thermal power capacity by 2029 as part of efforts to reduce the cost of electricity and strengthen energy security.
Minister for Energy and Green Transition, Dr. John Abdulai Jinapor, said the project is expected to provide additional capacity while supporting government’s broader objective of ensuring reliable and affordable electricity for industries and households.
“We have taken an ambitious policy to procure 1,200 megawatts of thermal capacity with combined cycle on our own as a country so that it can reduce the cost of power,” Dr. Jinapor said.
Speaking at the 2026 Future of Energy Conference, he said government’s analysis indicates that the project should be completed by 2029, describing it as a potential “game-changer” for Ghana’s power sector.
However, the minister said government faces a challenge in securing adequate power between now and 2029 without creating excess capacity obligations once the new plants become operational.
Dr. Jinapor said the ministry is therefore working with stakeholders to develop an arrangement that will provide additional electricity in the interim while avoiding a long-term financial burden on the sector.
He said the thermal capacity forms part of wider reforms aimed at making Ghana’s power sector financially sustainable and reducing the cost of electricity to support industrial competitiveness.
He disclosed that government has so far paid $1.7 billion of inherited debt owed to Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and restored the World Bank guarantee.
Dr. Jinapor also said negotiations with IPPs had saved the country $250 million, while a shift from liquid fuel to gas for thermal generation saved another $500 million in the previous year through fuel import substitution.
#Energy #JohnJinapor #ThermalPower #GhanaEnergy #CitiNewsroom #PowerSector #Electricity #FutureOfEnergyConference
