China's Government Funds Ghana's 400-Megawatt Hydro Plant

Written by Richard Finlayson, Senior International Editor for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Ghana, with a population of 25 million, has a growing need for new sources of electricity. A number of projects are being developed to secure future electricity supply. The Grand Bui hydropower project has started generating 133 megawatts (MW), and the plant's full complement of three turbines is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2013 with a total generating capacity of 400 MW.

Work will continue on the plant's infrastructure into 2014. When completed, Bui will be the second-largest hydropower plant in Ghana. The 1,200-MW Askombo plant, built in the 1960s and upgraded in 2006, is the largest.

The Bui project is being built by Sinohydro (SH:601669.SS) (Beijing, China) and has been under construction for about five years. Funding for the Bui project comes from the Chinese government and the Exim Bank of China (EBC), with the Ghanaian government contributing $60 million. The project has been calculated to have exceeded original estimates by $164.8 million. Ghana was able to bridge the shortfall with funding from EBC.

The gas-fired Takoradi 3 combined cycle project will add 130 MW to the system. Kpone, a gas-fired plant now under construction, will add another 200 MW to the grid in its first phase.

The expansion planned for Takoradi 2 will move it from 220 MW to 330 MW and is being executed by the National Energy Company of Abu Dhabi as an independent power project (IPP). The state electricity utility, Volta River Authority, plans to sell $700 million bonds to fund the 700 MW in additional power.

For related information, see February 4, 2013, article - Abu Dhabi's TAQA Drive Ghana's First Independent Power Project, and April 9, 2013, article - Ghana Expands Renewable Targets Through 2020.

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