According to a report published by the energy ministry, Ghana, a West African country, is projected to urgently spend 562 billion United States dollars on its energy transition programme by 2070.
The “Ghana, on Energy Transition Framework 2022–2070” report outlines the plan to transition from fossil-based fuels to zero-carbon or cleaner energy.
The report emphasized that the energy and transportation sectors are key areas for reducing emissions. Accordingly, it outlines steps to be taken to transition these sectors towards net-zero emissions to boost socio-economic development.
Ghanaian President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has observed that the rationale behind the country’s energy transition is geared towards a future of net-zero emissions.
“We have developed this National Energy Transition Framework, which is aimed at decarbonizing the energy sector.
This is a long-term net-zero framework (2022-2070), expected to complement existing efforts with new measures, such as increased renewable energy penetration, conversion of thermal plants to natural gas and the integration of nuclear power into the energy mix,” said Akufo-Addo.
Investing in the country’s energy transition includes providing “transmission and distribution infrastructure, additional gas infrastructure, natural gas generation plants, and storage facilities, as well as investment in electric vehicle charging points.”
In the industrial sector, activities such as replacing biomass boilers with gas and electric boilers and enhancing electric motors for efficiency will be undertaken. In the service sector, the transition focuses on space cooling and refrigeration since they account for more than 85 percent of the sector’s energy consumption.
The global transition’s impact on fossil fuel assets is generally expected to negatively affect the industry through stranding (the loss of value of an asset due to changes in policy, regulation, consumer behaviour and preferences, and technology).
In the petroleum sector, assets at risk include fossil fuel reserves and capital goods used for extracting, processing, and transporting fuel.
The downstream sector is expected to experience notable changes, with new compressed natural gas (CNG) stations and electric vehicle charging points built to meet the demand for new transport fuels.
Accessing funding for oil and gas projects could be challenging and expensive, as the risk of stranding is built into the cost. Renewable and clean technology investments are expected to increase, thus providing an avenue for financial institutions to strategize to finance such investments adequately.
The country is projected to achieve universal access to electricity and high access to modern cooking fuels in the energy transition, which will significantly raise the energy access profile of Ghana. This will provide adequate electricity for all sectors of the economy and lead to increased industrial and socio-economic development.
With universal electrification, more than 95 percent of households would have access to electricity for other productive uses, such as running cold stores, hairdressing saloons, dressmaking, and local eateries. The transition also takes into account improvements in access to solar irrigation, which would guarantee all-year-round farming.
The transition in the electricity sector is projected to create 1,367,894 jobs, while in the fuel supply chain, 1,404,702 jobs will be created.
According to the government, the energy transition will require approximately 120,459 acres, about 0.17 percent of Ghana’s estimated agricultural land area; hence, it has little implications for agriculture and food security.
Mark Agyeman, technical manager for the Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC), has urged the government to exercise caution in pursuing the transition, considering the potential risks and benefits.
“I will urge the government to approach the energy transition cautiously. It is important to consider the country’s current economic conditions and not rush them,” said Agyemang to journalists at a workshop recently.
According to the International Energy Agency, the average global temperature has gradually increased since the Industrial Revolution. This rise is due to human activities releasing large amounts of greenhouse gases (GHG) into the atmosphere, underscoring the crucial role of the energy transition in combating climate change.
Fossil fuel burning for electricity generation, heating, transport, and industrial processing mainly releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
Since 1970, carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have increased by about 90 per cent, with emissions from fossil fuel combustion and industrial processes contributing about 78 per cent of the total greenhouse gas emissions.
According to the IEA, greenhouse gas emissions were dominated by coal burning (42 percent), followed by oil (34 percent) and natural gas (22 percent).
The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 13 called for urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts, following which the 2015 Paris Agreement on Climate Change was adopted.
Major emitting countries that cannot reduce their emissions to acceptable levels agreed to support developing countries adopting cleaner energy options in exchange for carbon credits. Africa accounted for 3.8 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions in 2024.
Despite the modest efforts made since the Paris Agreement, global emission levels still need to catch up and fall far short of the ambitions of the agreement.
The UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland (COP26) affirmed the need to accelerate actions to reduce CO2 emissions to reach a net-zero level.
