Ghana is set to construct a 1,200-megawatt state-owned gas-fired power plant, which Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson says will become the country’s largest power generation facility when completed.
The proposed plant will surpass the 1,020MW Akosombo Hydroelectric Power Station and is expected to provide reliable and affordable electricity to support Ghana’s industrialisation and economic transformation.
Speaking at the Future of Energy Conference 2026, organised by the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP), Dr. Forson said access to dependable and competitively priced energy was critical to the country’s industrial ambitions.
“Ghana is acting by building a 1,200 MW state-owned gas-fired power plant,” he said.
The finance minister placed Ghana’s planned investment within the wider challenge of expanding energy access and financing infrastructure across Africa.
He noted that about 600 million Africans still lacked access to electricity, while the continent received only around 2% of global clean energy investment.
“We cannot industrialise a continent the world considers too risky to power,” Dr. Forson said.
According to him, African countries must create the right conditions to attract greater investment into their energy sectors through efficient utilities, predictable regulatory frameworks and credible opportunities for private capital.
Dr. Forson also highlighted the financial challenges facing the continent, noting that major energy infrastructure projects required substantial long-term investment that governments could not finance alone.
He said Africa’s debt-servicing costs in 2025 accounted for more than 85% of the continent’s energy investment, underscoring the need for alternative financing mechanisms.
The minister called for greater use of guarantees, blended finance, local-currency financing, deeper capital markets and credible public-private partnerships to help close Africa’s energy financing gap.
Dr. Forson said Ghana’s planned 1,200MW power plant reflected the government’s commitment to securing the electricity needed to support industries, create jobs and drive long-term economic transformation.