BTA2023 The Government of Ghana is set to begin negotiations next week with N-Gas Limited of Nigeria to settle $37.5 million, a portion of its $75 million debt for gas supplies. The move is crucial to ensuring continued gas supply after the ongoing maintenance on gas pipelines, which is expected to be completed by March 2, 2025.
Government’s Commitment to Stable Power Supply
Speaking after a tour of the West Africa Gas Pipeline Company Limited (WAPCo) metering station in Tema, Energy Minister John Abdulai Jinapor emphasized the government’s dedication to resolving the debt issue.
“N-Gas has issued a letter threatening to halt gas supply due to the outstanding debt,” he revealed.
However, he assured Ghanaians that the government will do everything possible to ensure that once the gas pipeline cleaning and maintenance is complete, the flow of gas will resume to keep the power supply stable.
Pipeline Maintenance & Inspection Update
WAPCo, which operates the 569-kilometre pipeline from Nigeria through Tema to Takoradi, temporarily shut down gas transmission on February 5, 2025, for maintenance work.
Dr. Isaac Adjei Doku, General Manager of Corporate Affairs at WAPCo, provided an update:
- The shutdown allowed the launch of the Pipeline Inspection Gauge (PIG) to clean and inspect the pipeline, as per regulatory requirements.
- Three PIGs have been successfully launched from Tema to Takoradi, with the fourth expected to arrive by February 22, 2025.
- A final “intelligent PIG” will then be launched to collect detailed interior pipeline data.
Infrastructure Upgrades
As part of the maintenance work, WAPCo is replacing two subsea valves along the pipeline passing through Tema and Cotonou. The replacement vessel for this operation got into position on Monday, 18km offshore from Tema’s Regulating and Metering Station. With all efforts progressing as planned, WAPCo assured that the maintenance will be completed by March 2, 2025, ensuring the resumption of gas flow.
