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Written by Richard Finlayson, Senior International Editor for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Ghana's Volta River Authority (VRA), the country's main generator and supplier of electric power, and partner Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA) have completed the $330 million in financing for the expansion of the Takoradi 2 power plant.
This is Ghana's first independent power project and represents about 15% of the country's installed capacity and is the first to use project financing, according to TAQA. The TAQA International Company is a joint venture between TAQA (90%) and VRA (10%).
The Takoradi 2 expansion project will convert the exiting gas-fired plant into a combined-cycle unit, increasing output from 220 megawatts (MW) to about 330 MW without requiring additional fuel. It also represents a 50% capacity addition without increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The extra power will be sold to VRA under a revised, 25-year power purchase agreement.
The plant was recently converted from a primarily oil-fired plant to a natural gas feed, as part of the power industry's move toward cleaner-burning fuel.
The $330 million in project financing is being provided by the World Bank's International Finance Corporation and a consortium of international development finance institutions led by FMO, a development bank for which the Dutch government is the majority owner. The bank supports sustainable private-sector growth in emerging markets.
The engineering, procurement construction contract worth $260 million was awarded to a consortium of Mitsui & Company (JSE:8031) (Tokyo) and KEPCO (Seoul, South Korea) in 2011, and construction began in 2012.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
This is Ghana's first independent power project and represents about 15% of the country's installed capacity and is the first to use project financing, according to TAQA. The TAQA International Company is a joint venture between TAQA (90%) and VRA (10%).
The Takoradi 2 expansion project will convert the exiting gas-fired plant into a combined-cycle unit, increasing output from 220 megawatts (MW) to about 330 MW without requiring additional fuel. It also represents a 50% capacity addition without increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The extra power will be sold to VRA under a revised, 25-year power purchase agreement.
The plant was recently converted from a primarily oil-fired plant to a natural gas feed, as part of the power industry's move toward cleaner-burning fuel.
The $330 million in project financing is being provided by the World Bank's International Finance Corporation and a consortium of international development finance institutions led by FMO, a development bank for which the Dutch government is the majority owner. The bank supports sustainable private-sector growth in emerging markets.
The engineering, procurement construction contract worth $260 million was awarded to a consortium of Mitsui & Company (JSE:8031) (Tokyo) and KEPCO (Seoul, South Korea) in 2011, and construction began in 2012.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.