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Ghana will develop a local strategy to extract fossil fuels, Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta said on Thursday.
He noted that given the prevailing sentiments around the energy transition, there was a strong possibility that the country would end up with stranded assets, hence the need to accelerate exploration activities.
Mr Ofori-Atta, who said this when presenting a mid-year budget review, said the COVID-19 pandemic had amplified the campaign for a transition away from fossil fuels.
He said the Ghana National Petroleum Commission (GNPC) had started to seek opportunities for its subsidiary, GNPC Explorco, to acquire such assets and become a full-fledged operator to ensure the rapid development of the country’s hydrocarbon resources. .
Mr. Ofori-Atta said the new strategy may require an amendment or revision of the Oil Revenue Management Law to allow GNPC to enter into certain reserve-based loan transactions in order to generate the required funding. to complete acquisitions and finance exploration and development in these areas without having to depend on government funding.
He said GNPC has already identified some major potential offshore block acquisition targets for this company and has started discussions with shareholders to acquire a majority stake to eventually become an operator through Explorco.
The Minister of Finance said that, according to the law, the agreements, once concluded, would be presented to Parliament.
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