\u201cAs we speak, there is a high-powered delegation in China to conclude an agreement with the Chinese Exim Bank for assistance towards the construction of this dam,\u201d Kufour said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The delegation returned to Accra with promises of loans totalling US$562 million from Exim Bank, covering 90% of the dam\u2019s construction costs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The controversial<\/a> 400 MW project would take six years to complete. Located on the Volta River, it involved<\/a> resettling fishing communities, a contested compensation scheme and the flooding of one-fifth of the Bui National Park. Warnings<\/a> from conservation groups about the threat posed by the dam to vulnerable species, such as the hippopotamus, were largely ignored. The dam also failed to provide a lasting solution to Ghana\u2019s energy woes, with the country suffering further severe load-shedding<\/a> from 2012\u20132015.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Load-shedding is a means of managing the balance of demand and supply of electricity. Power distribution companies cut power supply to a proportion of consumers at certain times to reduce demand and so prevent wholesale blackouts. When national grids use load-shedding, consumers often have to turn to secondary power sources, such as diesel generators.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n To plan and manage the dam, the government established the Bui Power Authority (BPA), an electric utility company. Working with Chinese contractors Sinohydro, BPA embarked on a steep \u201clearning by doing\u201d curve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe combed around to see whether there were any engineers and technicians in Ghana with experience in dam construction,\u201d Fred Oware, former CEO of the BPA, told China Dialogue. \u201cWe didn\u2019t get any, so for me the answer lay in training young engineers. We [employed] 30 young civil engineers to expose them to the experience of dam construction.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Once the dam had been built, some Chinese technical experts stayed behind to assist in a skills transfer programme said Oware. In the end, the critical thing was to generate confidence in our local staff and technicians, and these programmes were to assist that effort,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The dam is now solely run by Ghanaians, Oware said. \u201cThis is a decision I am so proud of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n But research<\/a> published in 2021 by the South African Institute of International Affairs paints a different picture. \u201cThe BPA did not follow through on its commitments relating to skills development and technology transfer,\u201d wrote the researchers. Similar findings were made by Oliver Hensengerth, associate professor at Northumbria University, in a 2017 paper<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hensengerth wrote, however, that while it is \u201cquestionable that the transfer has benefited Ghana in skills terms, it may certainly do so in terms of clean energy production.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 2019, the Ghanaian government released its Renewable Energy Masterplan<\/a>. This blueprint for the expansion of renewables targets a total of 2,514 MW capacity by 2030, excluding large-scale hydro. That could bring renewable power to 10% of total installed capacity. Solar power is a prominent part of the target, accounting for 55% of projected capacity additions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 2020, a parliamentary act<\/a> charged<\/a> the BPA with \u201cdevelop[ing] renewable energy and other clean energy alternatives in the country,\u201d putting the 13-year-old utility at the core of Ghana\u2019s renewables drive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBui is taking the lead in the generation of solar energy in the country\u201d said Oware, explaining that the company plans to build a total solar capacity of 250 MW in the next two to three years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/a>Peter Acheampong, deputy director of renewable energy at BPA, said the utility is building solar PV on the Bui dam reservoir. In the case of drought, the solar PV could support the dam\u2019s electricity generation, he explained, calling it Ghana\u2019s first hybrid hydro\u2013solar plant to supply the national grid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n BPA has so far installed 51 MW<\/a> of solar PV in Bui, including 1 MW of floating solar \u2013 a first of its kind in West Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite efforts by the state to develop the expertise of local engineers and increase investment in renewable energy, many experts believe Ghana risks going back to the load-shedding days of 2012\u20132015 if investment in generation capacity is not accelerated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n John Abdulai Jinapor, ranking member for parliament\u2019s Mines and Energy Committee, has publicly expressed concern<\/a> about the country facing another energy crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The country has a peak demand<\/a> of 3,469 MW against a dependable capacity of 3,861 MW, as of April 2022. According to the 2021 Outlook Report<\/a> by Ghana\u2019s Energy Commission, energy demand has been increasing at an annual rate of 10.3% for the past five years. This rapid growth is attributable to population increase, economic development and greater access to electricity in the countryside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But BPA\u2019s current CEO, Samuel Kofi Ahiave Dzamesi, insists the firm is \u201con course to deliver the intended 10% penetration by 2030\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe are now starting to expand the capacity by progressing to phases 2 and 3 of our project by constructing solar plants of 100 MW and 50 MW,\u201d he told China Dialogue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He revealed that BPA is currently acquiring land across northern Ghana for \u201csolar projects between 50 and 100 MW\u201d as well as constructing \u201csmall hydro plants of around 50 MW on small rivers\u201d across the country. \u201cWe want to grow our capacity to 1 GW,\u201d he said, referring to total installed capacity of both hydro and solar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But with the country facing economic woes<\/a> and a drop in foreign direct investment<\/a>, how will such ambitious projects be financed? Energy analyst at Ghana\u2019s University of Development Studies, Kojo Poku, believes Ghana can only meet its 10% by 2030 target with investment from the private sector. He warns that underinvestment in electricity distribution infrastructure is to blame for a 25% loss of all power purchased.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe government currently is fiscally challenged and, for the foreseeable future, will unlikely lead huge investments in solar,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Today, Emmanuel Appiah runs a medium-sized printing business. Many such companies have a long-term strategy to generate electricity independently. \u201cWe cannot afford another massive load-shedding experience. That is why we have started investing in [rooftop] solar. Hopefully in the next five years, I should be completely off the national grid,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This article was produced as a result of a grant provided by the Africa-China Reporting Project at the Wits Centre for Journalism at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, and China Dialogue Trust. The views expressed are the authors<\/em>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Soaring energy demand means the West African country must act fast to avoid another energy crisis<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3907,"featured_media":96555,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[757],"tags":[554,585,593],"hashtags":[],"country":[50040738],"class_list":["post-96450","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-energy","tag-hydropower","tag-renewables","tag-solar","country-ghana"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"group](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/BPA-technicians-and-control-room-operators-monitoring-the-output-of-the-new-PV-system.-Photo-by-David-Corbus-NREL.jpg\")
<\/div>From hydro newbie to solar leader<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"floating](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Floating-Hydro-solar-PV-hybrid-HSH-on-the-Bui-Dam-Credit-BPA-1.jpg\")
<\/div>Threat of power crisis remains<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
We cannot afford another massive load-shedding experience<\/blockquote>Emmanuel Appiah<\/cite><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n