Lonrho Plc is pleased to announce that its wholly owned subsidiary, Lonrho Ports Ltd, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Ghana, represented by the Minister of Transport, to be the sole developer and manager for a new oil logistics port in Western Ghana to service the growing demands of the offshore oil industry in Ghana. The proposed new port will be located on a 2,000 acre site and will be designated as the strategic 'one stop' location for supporting the rapidly growing oil, gas and petrochemical industry in Western Ghana. The first phase of the development will be 200 acres and will include an oil logistics port to provide international standard, efficient logistics for offshore oil companies as they increase production from Ghana.
The project has an initial concession term of 25 years renewable for a further 25 years and it is envisaged that the project will be a similar operation to Lonrho's successful Luba Freeport that handles all the oil industry requirements in Equatorial Guinea. Many of the clients for the new project will be the same as those at Luba Freeport and the new port in Ghana will become the centre of the oil industry activity for Ghana. Under the terms of the MOU Lonrho Ports has been granted the sole right, for a period of twelve months, to undertake an environmental impact study, wave and bathometric surveys and to design and optimize the project. Thereafter, subject to the viability of the project, Lonrho has the sole right to develop and manage the free port. Located in the Western Region of Ghana, the new port will be strategically located close to the Jubilee oil field, substantially improving the current logistics for servicing the offshore rigs. The project will bring direct economic benefits to the Western Region creating new employment opportunities in the region, supporting local companies and will be a stimulus for commercial growth.
David Lenigas, Executive Chairman of Lonrho, commented: "Ghana is one of the fastest growing economies in Africa and has already started commercial daily oil production from offshore fields, and production is forecast to increase substantially over the next five years. An international standard, highly efficient, well located, oil port in the Western Region is important to provide the required infrastructure to support this growing industry. Lonrho is very experienced in building oil service ports and is delighted to be developing this strategically important project in conjunction with the Government of Ghana."
The oil industry in sub Saharan Africa has become a crucial component of global production and a strong driver of economic growth. The infrastructure to support the industry needs to be developed to meet the production forecasts of the producers across the Continent.
