The Minister of Energy and Green Transition, John Abdulai Jinapor, has revealed that Ghana is seeking to position itself on the continent as a driver of regional power supply.

According to him, the country aims to increase its solar energy capacity by 30 percent.

Speaking on a panel at the West African Energy Cooperation Summit (WA-ECS), Jinapor expressed confidence in achieving this target.

He emphasized that such progress cannot rely solely on private investment, noting that future power projects will be awarded through competitive procurement to ensure the best value.

"But one of the problems is that we can't leave this to the private sector alone. The President has announced an ambitious programme to deploy 1,200 megawatts of solar plants to serve as base load. We want to add about 500 megawatts of solar to complement our power supply.

"Our ultimate aim is to push our solar mix to about 30%. And from what we're doing, I'm very confident that we'll achieve that. For most of us, that is sustainable," he said.

John Jinapor rallies regional peers for integrated energy systems

He disclosed that Burkina Faso recently sought an emergency supply of 200 megawatts from Ghana to stabilize its grid.

Jinapor also announced an ongoing collaboration between Ghana and its neighboring countries to synchronize electricity development plans.

"We'll do it through competitive planning so that we get the best deal possible. We're working with our colleagues from neighboring countries—Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Togo, Benin, and Côte d'Ivoire, so that we also know what they are doing. Because if I want to build 1,000 megawatts and I'm thinking of exporting 500 to Burkina Faso, while Burkina is also building another 500 megawatts, we might end up with more than 1,200 megawatts," he added.

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