Ghana advances nuclear power plans with vendor talks and IAEA backing as timeline questions persist

Pinned summary · as of 05:48

Ghana is pressing ahead with preparations to add nuclear power to its electricity supply, holding talks with vendor countries and working with the International Atomic Energy Agency. What remains open is when a first plant could operate, how it would be paid for and which technology the country will choose.

What we know

• Energy Minister Dr John Abdulai Jinapor has made the case that nuclear power deserves a place in Ghana's future supply, pointing to rising demand, dwindling hydropower potential and the expense of thermal plants. Citi Newsroom likewise reported that the government values nuclear energy for cutting emissions, securing supply and possibly earning export income.
• Talks with technology suppliers are under way. The government described its discussions with vendors as advanced, and Citi Newsroom reported negotiations with a number of countries that could supply the technology.
• Ghana is building the institutional and regulatory groundwork for nuclear power with outside help. The Vaultz News reported that the regulatory framework is being developed with international technical cooperation, and Citi Newsroom reported that the IAEA is supporting institutional readiness, technical capacity and regulation.

What's disputed / unconfirmed

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  The Vaultz News reported that the government said in August that Ghana had formally entered Phase Two of the IAEA's Milestones Approach, and described that phase as preparation for an informed decision rather than approval to build. No other report has confirmed the step.
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  Citi Newsroom reported that Ghana is aiming for a 1 GW plant by 2030. Yet Dr Archibold Buah-Kwofie, who heads the Nuclear Power Institute within the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, said the first commercial plant can no longer be ready on the original schedule of this decade, blaming regulatory requirements, infrastructure readiness and financing arrangements. Energy expert Kwame Jantuah told MyJoyOnline that a 2039 target is achievable if preparations are complete, and Citi Newsroom carried his view on a revised target. These timelines have not been reconciled.
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  Dr Buah-Kwofie said Ghana has used about 70% of its viable hydropower, that illegal mining is damaging some water bodies and that gas output could begin to fall by 2030 under the National Gas Master Plan. He put thermal generation at roughly 62% of the energy mix. These figures come from him alone.
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  Citi Newsroom reported that Ghana is weighing small modular reactors, each rated at up to 300 MW(e), about a third of a conventional reactor. It said experts advised against floating reactors, noting that only one commercial floating plant exists and that Russia is the sole supplier. A MyJoyOnline column added that Russia may seek political influence in return for the technology, a suggestion the column does not support with evidence.
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  Experts quoted by Citi Newsroom, and a MyJoyOnline column, urged Ghana to follow the IAEA roadmap, spread its financing beyond a single vendor, keep the Nuclear Regulatory Authority free of government influence, strengthen the grid and develop wind and solar alongside nuclear. Citi Newsroom also listed limited grid capacity and an undecided technology choice as obstacles. These are recommendations by unnamed experts or a columnist.
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  In its own commentary, The Vaultz News contended that a nuclear plant would do nothing for the electricity sector's present money problems and that Ghana risks a costly commitment lasting beyond the political cycle that approves it if the economics and institutions prove weak. It also reported that a nuclear plant simulator has been acquired at the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission. Neither point has been confirmed by other reports.

Why it matters for Ghana

Electricity costs make up between 20% and 30% of production costs for Ghanaian industry, according to Citi Newsroom, so decisions on new power sources reach factory prices and jobs. With thermal plants supplying a large share of power and hydropower largely tapped, households and businesses in Accra, Kumasi and elsewhere depend on how the country funds and sequences its next generation projects. The financial strain in the power sector adds weight to the question of whether Ghana can afford a nuclear plant.