Accra, Feb. 8, GNA - Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) on Monday pledged to make the company a leading global oil and gas company whose operations had profound impact on Ghanaians.
Nana Boakye Asafu-Adjaye, Managing Director of the company who made the pledge said its vision was based on four main strategies which are; building capacity and expanding activities, replacing and growing reserves, pursuing efficient capitalization and optimum participation and creating an appropriate environment for investment where the framework, rules and regulations instituted are fair and transparent.
Nana Asafu-Adjaye, was addressing a GNPC media interaction in Accra.
He explained that the first strategy would ensure management retained the right professionals across the different fields and these would include; geologists, geophysicists, petroleum engineers, lawyers, finance and audit professionals.
Nana Asafu-Adjaye, said while the capacity building programme would incorporate the deployment and effective use of information and communication technology (ICT), GNPC would re-establish the capacity to conduct petroleum operations on its own.
He said this would begin with the establishment of a joint operating company with one of their potential partners and play a leading role in the Natural Gas Infrastructure Development Project for national development.
"GNPC would broaden its operating function to include Crude Oil Trading and Marketing. We have already re-established the Crude Oil Marketing Department within the organisation and have begun lifting crude oil cargoes from Nigeria for the country," he added.
Nana Asafu-Adjaye, said to ensure continuous growth and replacement of reserves, GNPC would continue aggressive promotion of all basins and where data gaps existed such as the Volta Basin and the ultra deep water offshore area, the necessary data would be acquired to enable the generation of quality leads and prospects as well as an assessment of the potentials in those areas.
He said management would pursue its efforts to acquire the stakes available in the Deepwater Tano and West Cape Three Points blocks including the Kosmos stake.
"This acquisition is a highly priority initiative which forms part of the core strategy of optimum participation and increasing its stake in petroleum operations," he said.
Nana Asafu-Adjaye announced that management would package itself in a manner that would enable it establish credit ratings to ensure effective and easy access to financial markets to be able to raise the needed financing to accelerate growth.
On creating appropriate environment for investment, he said management would ensure the right balance between maximizing benefits for the country and Ghanaians and ensuring that investors achieved a fair return on investments.
Nana Asafu-Adjaye said management would collaborate with Government to institute measures for the optimal fiscal package and incentives to ensure sustained direct investment in exploration, development and production of oil and gas.
He said this would include incentives for achieving competitive cost of net gas as a basis for developing a vibrant local gas and petrochemical industry, incentives to support local service companies.
Mr. Ato Ahwoi, Chairman of Board of Directors of GNPC, stressed the need for Ghanaians and Ghanaian institutions to lead in the development of manpower for the sector, as well as upgrading national technical training establishments.
"Ghana must produce and reproduce all levels of oil industry professionals and make it unnecessary to send many of the youth abroad to acquire basic training, "he added.
Mr. Ahwoi said GNPC had a responsibility to step up to the challenge of supporting senior high schools, polytechnics, the universities and the Regional Maritime Academy to provide the professional leadership required to fulfil its mandate to ensure the nation benefited optimally from the petroleum industry.
GNA
