By Mabel Adorkor Annang
Ghana’s power sector is faced with huge debts, leading to a crippling energy trilemma — intermittent supply (dumsor), high electricity costs, and a precarious generation mix that continues to drag on the national economy and development goals.
The search for a reliable, clean, and accessible baseload power source has now accelerated the nation’s pursuit of nuclear energy, positioning it as the ultimate “game changer” to solve the electricity generation and supply challenges and power an industrial boom.
The Generation Gap: Why Ghana Needs the Nuclear Push
Ghana’s current electricity generation mix is dangerously skewed.
Data from the Energy Commission (2022) shows thermal generation dominating at 14,810 Gigawatt-hours (GWh) or 64%, followed by hydro at 8,192 GWh (35%), with genuine renewables contributing a marginal 0.70% (162 GWh).
This thermal dependence translates directly into the high cost of electricity that hurts consumers and industries, because the thermal plants rely heavily on expensive fuels for power generation.
Even the current generation capacity does not meet Ghana’s total energy demands.
As Ghana commits to the global energy transition agenda, achieving a clean, affordable, and reliable power supply has become a national security imperative.
Hence, the attempt at reviving the Atomic Energy Dream.
The foundation for this ambition was set by Ghana’s first President, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, whose vision for harnessing nuclear power for peaceful purposes birthed the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC) in 1963.
Although this initiative was politically truncated, GAEC’s mandate remained.
With concerted efforts, Ghana completed Phase One of the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) rigorous Nuclear Infrastructure Requirements in 2022, solidifying the legal, regulatory, and pre-feasibility framework.
Ghana is currently in Phase Two, focusing on crucial steps like vendor selection and identification of two potential sites for its first Nuclear Power Plant.
With the available information and pronouncements from government officials, Ghana is pursuing a multi-vendor, multi-reactor approach to maximize its generation capacity and reach:
Large Reactor (LR): The government has signed a framework agreement with the China National Nuclear Corporation for a 1,200 Megawatt (MW) Large Reactor, which will be financed under a Build, Operate, and Transfer (BOT) model with local equity participation.
Small Modular Reactors (SMRs): Agreements with the US-based NuScale and Regnum Technology Group, in collaboration with a Japanese firm, target the establishment of SMRs that will generate a total of 924 MW (comprising 12 modules, each generating about 77 MW). The SMRs, to be financed through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP), are vital for providing power to far-reaching communities, accelerating Ghana’s journey past the current 89.5% electricity access (World Bank 2023 data) to meet its 100% universal access target.
The deployment of these reactors will provide the large-scale, zero-carbon baseload energy crucial for enhancing grid reliability and realizing Ghana’s climate change goals.
It is refreshing to note that not only will nuclear support the country’s climate change goals, but it will also power the value chain and boost the Cedi against the country’s major foreign trading currencies.
The introduction of nuclear power is set to fundamentally reshape Ghana’s economic landscape by supplying high-capacity, cheaper electricity to key industrial sectors.
Unlocking the Bauxite Value Chain
The energy stability from nuclear power is essential for realizing the full economic benefit of Ghana’s mineral wealth.
The Ministry of Energy’s Deputy Director of Power (Nuclear and Alternative Energy), Dr. Robert Sogbaji, emphasized that Ghana is poised to receive full value for money from its bauxite deposits, now estimated at a minimum of 375 Million Metric Tonnes (MMT) (up from 250 MMT), if the ore is reprocessed using the cheap steam and electricity from nuclear energy.
This will finally enable the establishment of the necessary industries and revamping of companies such as VALCO for aluminum refinery, closing the crucial aluminum value chain gap.
Dr. Sogbaji further explained that increasing power generation capacity through nuclear energy will directly lead to increased electricity exportation via the West African Power Pool (WAPP).
This surge in power exports will positively impact Ghana’s forex reserves and strengthen the Cedi.
Even the upstream petroleum sector stands to benefit.
The IAEA advocates the use of nuclear techniques, such as radiotracers and radiological techniques like Non-Destructive Tests (NDT), which are inexpensive, effective methods to precisely determine leakage and defects in pipelines and reduce the cost of drilling.
Dr. Sogbaji stated that harnessing the full potential of nuclear techniques could allow the country to use nuclear radiation to quantify petroleum systems and accurately determine the size of petroleum reservoirs.
A Subregional Leader in Energy and Technology
Energy Minister Herbert Krapa articulated the ambition for Ghana to become a power hub in the subregion by generating surplus nuclear power for export to neighbours like Togo, Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, and Benin through the West African Power Pool (WAPP).
He also stressed that Ghana’s experience in developing its nuclear programme can serve as a model for other nations — providing capacity building and establishing regulatory frameworks for regional nuclear development — acting as a catalyst for other countries like Nigeria, Egypt, and South Africa, which are also pursuing nuclear energy.
“Ghana’s nuclear journey is a long-term project. It is a priority to note the interest from international partners, and we need to prioritize finding the right funding and building the necessary capacity and human capital to get the project right,” Mr. Krapa stated, emphasizing the project’s peaceful, civilian purpose as a reliable baseload source.
The Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) and energy analysts like Dr. Yusif Sulemana agree that nuclear power represents a strategic opportunity.
Dr. Sulemana, CEO of Eureka Energy Solutions, strongly endorses the nuclear programme, asserting that achieving huge power capacity — which is a necessity globally and continentally — cannot be fulfilled by renewables alone.
While acknowledging public concerns, Dr. Sulemana emphasized that nuclear technologies have evolved, now representing the safest and cleanest source of energy.
AGI Greater Accra Chairman Tsornam Cleanse Akpeloo noted that for industry, this means reduced operational disruptions and improved competitiveness — essential for value addition and job creation.
The Acting Director of the Nuclear Power Institute, Mr. Achibold Buah Kwofie, underlined the fact that diversification is key to energy security, citing South Korea’s development as a model.
Several African countries including Nigeria, Algeria, Morocco, Tanzania, Rwanda, Senegal, Ethiopia, Libya, South Sudan, Zimbabwe, and Zambia are adopting nuclear energy to accelerate economic growth and boost the availability, reliability, and affordability of power to meet domestic and industrial energy needs.
Ghana’s nuclear ambition is a bold, long-term commitment.
If the first power is generated by the suggested target of 2030, it will deliver the energy security required to power Ghana’s industrialization and fundamentally transform its economic destiny.
Nuclear power will indeed be a game changer.
