Editorial: Industry backs call for nuclear energy

The Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) has expressed strong support for including nuclear energy in the country’s energy mix, emphasising its potential to strengthen energy security and reduce the cost of power – particularly for businesses and industries.

This endorsement was made against a  backdrop of the country’s ongoing search for reliable and affordable energy solutions to fuel industrial growth and broader economic development, which includes nuclear and renewable energy sources.

AGI president Dr. Humphrey Ayim-Darke emphasised the strategic importance of nuclear energy in ensuring a stable and continuous power supply. Energy reliability is critical to industrial performance and competitiveness; and nuclear power offers a long-term solution to current challenges facing the sector.

He notes that it will not only ensure consistent supply but also help reduce the cost-burden on industries.

Indeed, the country’s industrial sector has long been constrained by high electricity costs which limit competitiveness both domestically and internationally.

Clean and renewable energy technologies are pivotal for the country’s industrial growth and can potentially accelerate manufacturing across the African continent.

Nuclear power is an economic electricity-generation source because of its low levelised cost, low operating cost and, most significantly, relatively stable fuel regime. Thus, nuclear power holds the key to reducing the country’s overall electricity tariff and ensuring a reliable power supply, which would give Ghanaian businesses the impetus to be very competitive.

While other countries spend less than 20 percent on electricity to produce goods and services,  Ghanaian industries spend close to 40 percent of production cost on electricity. This makes Ghanaian goods and services relatively expensive.

The African Continental Free Trade Area’s (AfCFTA) establishment makes it important for Ghanaian industries to properly position themselves to take full advantage of the nuclear power project.

The Nuclear Power Project’s objective is to support overall economic and industrial transformation as a major driver and promote Ghana as a sub-regional energy hub.

Several African countries – like Ghana, Nigeria, Egypt, Morocco, Kenya, Niger, Tunisia and Uganda among others – are currently considering the addition of nuclear energy to their electricity generation mix.

The idea of integrating nuclear power into Ghana’s electricity generation mix dates back to 1961, when the country’s first president Dr. Kwame Nkrumah envisioned doing so. However, the idea went into hibernation after his treacherous and nationally disastrous removal from power.

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