Georgetown: In order to stimulate growth and development for their citizens, Guyana and Ghana must find ways to substantially develop its oil and gas resources.
Highlighting this key point was President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, when he gave his opening address to the International Energy Conference and Expo, on Tuesday morning at the Marriott Hotel, Georgetown.
“How do we bridge the gap if we are not allowed to exploit the resources that we have been blessed with?… The Almighty has blessed our lands with abundant natural resources and we believe that it would be wholly unfair for the world to demand that Africa demand the exploitation of these resources,” the Ghanaian President told the ceremony.
He said it is important that countries add value to oil and gas resources and not just exploit them in the raw form if countries like Ghana and Guyana are to transition to the state of developed countries.
“The effective management of these resources will determine whether we make it or not,” he pointed out.
The event, observed under the theme, “Charting a Sustainable Energy Future,” President Akufu-Addo relayed that the conference brings into sharp focus the goals of COP26 – a global conference held last year with world leaders to tackle climate change.
Against this backdrop he articulated, “the effects of climate change, particularly on the continent of Africa have been catastrophic. Agriculture, water and energy are essential drivers of development in our countries.
We have a solemn duty to take immediate and bold steps to protect global climate from going beyond unbearable limits. It is in our own interest to salvage the economic fortunes of the continent, and more so, step up our collective efforts to fight decisively against climate change, to fight against climate change more aggressively.”
Ghana became a full-blown commercial oil and gas producer with the discovery of the offshore Jubilee field – estimated to hold 700 million barrels of oil and 800 billion cubic feet of gas. Development of the production site started right away, and in December 2010 oil production was officially launched.
Meanwhile, Guyana discovered oil in the prolific Stabroek Block in May 2015. Production first started in the Liza One Development with a production of 120,000 barrels of oil per day. Just a few days ago, production commenced at the Liza Two development with 220,000 barrels of oil, thereby taking Guyana’s daily production to 340,000 barrels. Other major oil and gas developments are in the pipelines.
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