Mr Speaker, in the Statement that I just indicated, the Hon Minister talked about the 230 megawatts Kpone Project. Mr Speaker, that was in 2008/09 when the Hon Minister said it would have been completed. The bare and sad fact is that, as I talk to you today, six years down the line, the Kpone Project has not been completed.
Mr Speaker, we had paid according to Dr Duffuor, all that was supposed to be paid, but that was because there was a fratricidal warfare at Volta River Authority (VRA). As at today when I checked, they had not completed it.
So, the President clearly indicated in his Address that we are short by about 300 megawatts -- 600 megawatts. Mr Speaker, that alone is 230 megawatts which could have been triggered into our generating mix for us to be enjoying now.
We do not want to talk about corruption now; can they tell us, what on earth is the reason why that Project has lasted for six years?
Mr Speaker, it is an accepted fact that the gestation period for development of this Project takes some time. So, it was the reason when the NPP Government took the view that energy is the fulcrum for economic development of every country. Indeed the reason why we now have, I am told, 4.2 GDP growth rate is because there is no power. If we do not have the power there is no fulcrum on which the economy would revolve.
When we took that view, the NPP Administration had a foresight because we talked about the 5,000 megawatts that they had borrowed so, we initiated the following projects --
Mr Speaker, let anybody put it on record, what project has the NDC Government for six years initiated in this country save for the 2.5 solar project that we talked about. Let them bring the evidence; which project have they initiated? I am told that His Excellency the Vice President, Paa Kwesi Bekoe Amissah -Arthur, recently cut the sod for the construction of a 230 CENIT Sunon power project.
Mr Speaker, that Project was developed in 2008. It is a sad fact but let me rush through some of the things that we did. Apart from the specific ones that the Government paid the moneys, there are others we had to support and one specifically is the Sunon Asorgli I hear them talk about.
We cut the sod for Sunon Asorgli. Mr Speaker, incidentally, the President talked about Sunon Asorgli and the 260 megawatts and something they are boasting about. What we initiated in 2007 was 560 megawatts and so, 200 megawatts was to commence and the remaining 360 megawatts would take over.
Mr Speaker, we then also did the -- bear with me Mr Speaker. The CENIT one, we named it Suno Osono which was later changed to CENIT Power; we did that too. What is even worse: Dr Duffuor in this same document, Budget of 2010 -- Do you know what he said? He had read something and when he read it, he decided to take a cue from there.
That was what Hon Baah-Wiredu of blessed memory said in the Budget Statement to this House on Thursday, 15th November, 2007 for the 2008 Financial Year. He said something but because the President does not learn from history, he would not take a cue from that.
This was what he said on page 127, paragraph (454), the very last paragraph. He was talking about the problems with the Akosombo Dam and the reservoir:
“Government will also ensure a prudent management of the Volta Lake to avoid over-drafting of the water in the lake.”
For that reason, he goes on to paragraph (455).
“The growth in demand for electr icity, coupled with the decision to control the drafting of the lake, has caused a shift of the generation mix towards costly thermal generation.”
And then he continues;
“The projected generation mix depicts that thermal generation will constitute 67 per cent of generation and hydro about 33 per cent.”
Dr Duffuor, taking a cue from there, in the 2010 Budget, says on page 92, paragraph (295), the very last one;
“Government also signed a Memorandum of Understanding --”
