Ghana is accelerating onshore petroleum exploration in the Voltaian Basin, encompassing eight regions of the country, in hopes of adding onshore reserves to the country’s petroleum resources, an official has said.
Victoria Emeafa Hardcastle, chief executive officer (CEO) of the Petroleum Commission Ghana, made the remarks on Friday at the Volta Economic Forum held in Anloga, a coastal district, to promote investment opportunities in the Volta Region.
According to Hardcastle, the state-owned Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) has leapfrogged exploration in the basin, whose petroleum prospects remain uncertain due to the lack of exploration activities.
The CEO said GNPC has already completed the third phase of its 2D seismic acquisition program in the basin that accounts for 40 percent of the country’s total land surface.
“GNPC, after the completion and interpretation of the seismic data, plans to drill two exploration wells in the basin by the third quarter of 2026,” the official announced.
She added that three other private exploration and production companies have been granted licenses to undertake various exploration activities, including the drilling of exploratory wells at different locations within the Voltaian Basin.
Following the drilling of the exploratory wells by GNPC next year, Hardcastle said Ghana will invite investors to acquire rights to conduct exploration and production activities within the basin, covering an area of about 103,000 square km.