West African Gas Pipeline starts operations

The much-awaited West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP) project has began pouring natural gas from Nigeria for supply to their designated regions.
A statement issued by the Director, Corporate Services of the Volta River Authority (VRA), Mr Kofi Asante indicated that the quality of gas to be supplied to the system was now within specification, and on 6th December 2008, the offshore line was successfully filled with natural gas all the way to Takoradi and shut in.

It said, commissioning and line packing of the WAGP was ongoing and is expected to continue till the end of the year, with free flow of natural gas expected to be available for power generation at Takoradi.
"Discussions are currently in progress with N- gas, the supplier of the gas to the Takoradi plant to ensure that supply is continued." The authority further stated that the free flow of gas, depending on the pressure, would be available for one or two turbines at Takoradi, adding that the measure will ensure a reduction in the costof production as natural gas is cheaper than light crude oil, which has been the source of fuel for the Takoradi plant since its construction ten years ago.

The West African Gas Pipeline, which was started in 2004, was completed in 2007 to help make lower cost fuel in Nigeria available for power generation in Ghana, but the project suffered major setbacks because the original contractor could not complete the compressor stations at Lagos Beach that will allow fully compressed gas to be transported through the pipeline to Ghana to serve all available thermal plants, as well as industrial consumers.
The project consists of a 678 km gas pipeline that extends from the existing Escravos-Lagos gas pipeline at the Alagbado "Tee" to a new compressor station in Ajido near Lagos Beach and from there follows the coastline some 15 km offshore to the Takoradi power plant. It also includes lateral connections from the offshore line to onshore gas-receiving stations at Cotonou, Lome, and Tema.

The project is also expected to reduce the cost of electricity supply in Ghana, Togo and Benin by replacing oil with gas imported from Nigeria. The pipeline capacity also allows for future demand growth in power generation, and potential demand from minerals and other industrial sectors. In addition to its economic advantages, the replacement of oil by gas will improve local air quality as well as reducing the emission of greenhouse gasses.
The project is the first in West Africa to develop regional exports of natural gas and is fully supported by the New Economic Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) and by ECOWAS. It will promote regional economic and political integration.