Minister of Public Enterprises Joseph Cudjoe has recounted how funds for the first phase of Ghana’s Petroleum Hub could have been lost if not for an emergency trip he made to Beijing to sign three separate Memoranda of Understanding just hours before the financing guarantee deadline.
Joseph Cudjoe, then the Deputy Minister of Energy in charge of Finance and Infrastructure Development, left Ghana on December 19, 2019 and arrived in Beijing at 2:00am, he recounts.
The private sector-led initiative will be developed by the TCP-UIC Consortium, comprising Touchstone Capital Group Holdings Ltd and UIC Energy Ghana Ltd.
The $12 billion earmarked for the first phase will fund a refinery with a capacity of 300,000 barrels per day (bpd), a 90,000 bpd capacity petrochemical plant, 3 million cubic meters (m³) of storage tanks, and a jetty with port infrastructure.
“Boakye Agyarko, then Energy Minister, brought a memo on the project to me and asked that I work on it.
“As a consultant, I used my expertise to set things in motion and develop it.
“This led to the inauguration of a committee, the Petroleum Hub Taskforce, which I co-chaired with Hon. Amin Adam, who was then Deputy Minister of Energy, in charge of Petroleum.
“But there was a lack of interest, so I put together some technical people from the Ministry of Energy.
“We had Jacob Amoah, Nancy , Obed and Lawyer Yankson who were very driven and dedicated to support my effort at ensuring that the petroleum hub project succeeds. Then there was Ken Kanyagui, who was also a blessing to the project, as he was introduced as the one putting together a group of investors.”
The Effia lawmaker recalled how his zeal and passion for moving the Petroleum Hub from a concept to a reality earned him the nickname ‘Mr. Petroleum Hub’ as “it was like I didn’t have any interest apart from this hub project, which became an obsession”.
According to him, his commitment was also because of the enormity of the vision the memo from President Akufo-Addo carried and communicated, seeing him work his socks off.
“A $60 billion investment, wherever it goes in Ghana, is significant, but as soon as Western Region came up as a prospective and potential destination, I was energized to go beyond myself.”
The Jomoro Petroleum Hub is likely to stand as one of the most significant legacy projects of President Akufo-Addo and Joseph Cudjoe expressed his elation that the numerous late night work and trips to meet traditional leaders and the people of Nzema have “borne fruits that will outlast all of us present at this groundbreaking ceremony”.
“I’m also excited today because the name I proposed, Jomoro Petroleum Hub Development Corporation, which initially failed, has now been proposed by the President himself. I thought this was a significant legacy project the President is leaving, and if it’s for a people, a district so delineated and special, then it should be called Jomoro Petroleum Hub Development Corporation.”
By Emmanuel Kwame Amoh, Ghanaian journalist
The post Jomoro Petroleum Hub: How Ghana almost lost $12bn funding for Phase One first appeared on 3News.
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