The Minister for Energy, Matthew Opoku Prempeh, has noted that the country is geared towards balancing a low-carbon economy with economic growth.

He, however, cautioned on the need to exercise caution in the path towards achieving a zero carbon emission to ensure a vibrant stable economy.

“Global energy demand has outpaced renewable energy generation, thereby subjecting the world to a potential energy deficit if renewable energy will be relied on solely to power the world,” he stated in a speech read on his behalf by James Dwamena Yamoah, Director of Petroleum Upstream of the Ministry of Energy, at the second Offshore Africa Energy Summit held at the Holiday Inn Hotel in Accra yesterday.

 
Energy transition

The Minister called for a cautious approach towards Ghana’s energy transition to ensure an efficient growth trajectory, taking cognisance of the current global energy crisis which has been occasioned by the Russia-Ukraine war and the Israel-Gaza conflict.
 

Energy as Game Changer 

Mr Opoku Prempeh asserted that with several African countries recently discovering oil in commercial quantities, the economic fortunes of the continent will be transformed, subject to good leadership and prudent management.

“But equally, I believe that as a continent, we must speak with one clear voice and insist on leveraging our God-given resources to improve the lives of our people while remaining committed to energy transition. It is not, in my view, a mutually exclusive situation but a complementary one,” he noted.

He called on the continent’s energetic youthful population to take control of the continent’s rich natural resources, using energy as the bedrock to harness these resources to develop the continent.

A member of the Offshore Africa’s Advisory Board, Professor Wumi Iledare, in his remarks, noted that Africa’s economic and energy sustainability is tied to oil and gas, charging Ghana to be proactive about its oil and gas to maximise the needed benefits.

He called on the continent’s energy experts to think about natural gas as a fuel for the future, which will serve as the foundation for the continent’s energy security.

Stakeholder engagement

Stakeholders at the summit resolved to engage more to find ways to create opportunities out of the oil and gas discoveries on the continent.

Source: GraphicOnline