Two national oil giants, Ghana’s GNPC and Brazil’s Petrobras are holding a high-level technical engagement this week to reset and deepen their long-standing partnership, in a move aimed at boosting Ghana’s upstream petroleum ambitions through shared expertise and data-driven collaboration.
The weeklong programme, running from January 19 to 23, 2026, brings a seven-member Petrobras delegation to Accra for intensive technical sessions with the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), marking a renewed phase of bilateral cooperation between the two state oil companies.
The engagement opened at GNPC’s Research and Technology Centre (RTC), where the delegation was formally received by the Acting Chief Executive Officer of GNPC, Mr. Kwame Ntow Amoah, together with senior management and technical leaders of the Corporation.
Welcoming the team, Mr. Ntow Amoah described the visit as a timely revival of a relationship that dates back to GNPC’s early years.
“This engagement builds on a partnership that spans several decades,” he said. “During GNPC’s formative period, Petrobras supported our institutional development and capacity-building efforts. Today’s visit reflects our shared commitment to practical collaboration anchored in clearly defined mutual priorities.”
He noted that Petrobras played a key role in GNPC’s establishment in 1983, particularly in strategic organisational planning, adding that the current cooperation is now strengthened by a recently signed Confidentiality Agreement that enables deep technical data sharing and joint research.
At the heart of the engagement is a strategic alignment of Petrobras’ world-class technical expertise with Ghana’s evolving upstream goals. GNPC’s Deputy Chief Executive (Technical), Mr. Michael Aryeetey, briefed the delegation on Ghana’s petroleum landscape and the Corporation’s growth roadmap.
He said GNPC is pursuing strategic interventions to reverse declining production by optimising output from existing assets and marginal fields, while also strengthening its operatorship capabilities to lead complex exploration and production projects.
Mr. Aryeetey further highlighted frontier exploration opportunities in the Voltaian Basin, noting that Petrobras’ experience in complex geological environments could prove critical in unlocking the basin’s hydrocarbon potential.
Speaking for the Petrobras team, Mr. Rafael Pinto de Freitas, Upstream Joint Venture Development Engineer, said the visit was designed to be both exploratory and learning-focused.
“This visit is driven by a genuine interest in understanding GNPC’s strategy and identifying areas where both companies can collaborate to create shared value,” he said, adding that the engagement would assess the technical and commercial strengths of both entities as a basis for long-term cooperation.
During the week, the Petrobras delegation will take part in data room sessions, technical reviews and interactive workshops at the GNPC Research and Technology Centre.
The engagement forms part of GNPC’s broader strategy to partner with leading global national oil companies to accelerate knowledge transfer, strengthen internal technical capacity and ensure sustainable value creation for Ghana’s petroleum sector.
