Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson has announced plans for the construction of a 1,200-megawatt state-owned gas-fired power plant to provide reliable and affordable electricity for Ghana’s industrial transformation.
When completed, the facility is expected to become Ghana’s largest power plant, surpassing the 1,020-megawatt Akosombo Hydroelectric Power Station.
Speaking at the Future of Energy Conference 2026, organised by the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP), Dr Forson said reliable and affordable energy was critical to Ghana’s industrial ambitions.
“Ghana is acting by building a 1,200 MW state-owned gas-fired power plant,” he declared.
The Minister placed Ghana’s planned investment within the broader challenge of energy access and financing across Africa.
“About 600 million Africans lack electricity, yet Africa attracts only around 2 per cent of global clean-energy investment,” he said.
“We cannot industrialise a continent the world considers too risky to power.”
Dr Forson stressed the need for African countries to create the right conditions to attract greater investment into the energy sector.
He said this would require efficient utilities, predictable regulation and credible opportunities for private investors.
The Finance Minister acknowledged that major energy projects require substantial long-term financing that governments cannot provide alone.
“In 2025, Africa’s debt-servicing costs were equivalent to more than 85 per cent of the continent’s energy investment. Public budgets cannot carry it alone,” he stated.
He therefore called for guarantees, blended finance, local-currency funding, deeper capital markets and credible public-private partnerships to help close Africa’s energy financing gap.
Dr Forson said Ghana’s proposed 1,200-megawatt power plant demonstrated the government’s determination to secure reliable and affordable energy to power industries, create jobs and drive economic transformation.
