Le gouvernement ghanéen se prépare à entamer des négociations cruciales avec les responsables de N-Gas Limited du Nigeria la semaine prochaine. L’objectif est de payer 37,5 millions de dollars, une partie de la dette accumulée pour la fourniture de gaz aux centrales électriques du pays. Cette démarche vise à garantir la continuité de l’approvisionnement en gaz après la fin des travaux de maintenance en cours sur les gazoducs, dont l’achèvement est prévu pour le 2 mars 2025.
M. John Abdulai Jinapor, ministre de l’Énergie et de la Transition verte, a souligné l’importance de cet engagement lors d’une visite à la West Africa Gas Pipeline Company Limited (WAPCo) à Tema, vendredi. Il a tenu à s’informer de l’avancement des travaux et a réaffirmé la volonté du gouvernement de résoudre cette situation critique.
The West Africa Gas Pipeline Company Limited (WAPCo), operator of the 569-kilometre gas pipeline linking Nigeria to Takoradi in Ghana via Tema, has temporarily interrupted gas transport since 5 February 2025. This interruption is to allow maintenance work to be carried out, including cleaning and inspection of the line.
Mr Jinapor revealed that N-Gas had recently issued a letter threatening to cut off Ghana's gas supply due to a total debt of $75 million accumulated over the years. "The government is focusing on resolving the problem. We will do everything possible to ensure that after the pipeline is cleaned, the flow of gas will resume to keep the lights on, because the health and growth of the economy depend on access to stable energy," he said.
The Minister also congratulated WAPCo and its partners on their commitment to meeting maintenance deadlines.
Dr Isaac Adjei Doku, WAPCo's Managing Director of Corporate Affairs, assured that the current maintenance work would be completed by 2 March 2025, barring unforeseen circumstances. He explained that the temporary shutdown of the pipeline was necessary to allow a pipeline inspection gauge (PIG) to be launched to clean and inspect the interior of the pipeline, in accordance with current regulations.
To date, three PIGs have been successfully launched between Tema and Takoradi. The fourth PIG is underway and is due to be handed over in the early hours of Saturday 22 February. When it arrives, the final PIG, known as the "intelligent PIG", will be launched to finalise the process. This tool collects detailed data on the condition of the pipeline's interior.
As part of this work, WAPCo is also replacing two subsea valves located off Tema and Cotonou. The vessel in charge of these operations has been in position since Monday, around 18 kilometres offshore from the Tema regulation and metering station.
Thanks to these combined efforts, Ghana hopes not only to ensure the resumption of gas supplies, but also to strengthen the reliability of its energy network, a key issue for the country's economic and social development.