The Member of Parliament for Ho West, Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzrah has lauded the establishment of the Petroleum Hub Development Corporation (PHDC) describing it as “a generational legacy and a critical engine” for the economic transformation of the country.
According to him, the project is a national imperative with the potential of transforiming Ghana’s energy sector and position the country as the energy hub of the West African subregion even as it deepens industrial base and job creation.
Mr Bedzrah who is Chairman of the Energy Committee of Parliament made the observation in a statement on the floor of the House on the need to adequately resource PHDC financially to achieve its objective.
The legislator is accordingly advocating a sustainable funding source for the project to enable it achieve its objective of making Ghana an energy hub.
“Mr. Speaker, the Petroleum Hub is not just another infrastructure project — it is a national imperative, a generational legacy, and a critical engine for economic transformation. It will place Ghana at the centre of West Africa’s energy future, deepen our industrial base, and create hundreds of thousands of jobs for our people. Let us not allow the vision to be stalled by preventable funding constraints. Let us act boldly and urgently — to provide the Corporation with the means to deliver on this national dream“. Hon Bedzrah stated.
The Ho West lawmaker who further described the Petroleum Hub Project located in Jomoro in the Western region as an ambitious industrialization initiative in the country’s history said the initiative is under threat due to lack of funding.
..”this transformational agenda is under threat not from a lack of vision or strategy, but from lack of funding for the payment of compensation and servicing of the enclave” Mr Bedzrah noted.
PHDC is expected to serve as an integrated zone for refining, storage, distribution, trading, petrochemical production and would anchor Ghana into a powerhouse on the African continent.
Mr Bedzrah said the Energy committee has recommended for the consideration and approval by the House for the allocation of 10 pesewas per litre of fuel from the margins within the Unified Petroleum Price Fund (UPPF) directly to PHDC for its activities.
He also proposed that parliament ensures that a budgetary provision of GHS 300 million is made in the Mid-Year Budget Review or upcoming Appropriations Act for the payment of land compensation related to the Petroleum Hub Project.
The statement noted that relaible funding of the Petroleum Development Corporation will support the payment of land compensation to project-affected persons and communities, invest in the training and capacity-building of Ghanaians for a ready skilled workforce to meet the demand across the petroleum value chain.
The project is projected to attract over US$ 60 billion in investment and create over 780,000 direct and indirect jobs, boost export revenues, and enhance Ghana’s energy security and value chain development.
