President John Dramani Mahama says the government plans to sign an agreement before the end of 2026 to develop a 1,200-megawatt (MW) state-owned gas-fired thermal power plant as part of efforts to expand Ghana’s electricity generation capacity.
The proposed facility would have the largest installed generation capacity of any single power plant in Ghana if completed at the stated capacity.
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President Mahama announced the plan during a town hall meeting with the Ghanaian community in New York on Friday, September 25, 2026.
We are going to build the biggest thermal capacity in Ghana. Before the end of this year, we’re going to sign 1,200 megawatts of gas thermal power,” he said.
The proposed 1,200MW plant would have a higher installed capacity than the 1,020MW Akosombo Hydroelectric Power Station, currently Ghana’s largest single generating facility by installed capacity.
Government weighs future power needs
President Mahama said the decision to invest in additional thermal generation was being informed by changes in the global energy sector, including the transition towards renewable energy and the growing adoption of electric vehicles.
He said government was seeking to ensure that new investments remained commercially relevant as Ghana’s energy mix evolves, rather than committing resources to power assets that could eventually become stranded.
The President also disclosed that some Independent Power Producers (IPPs) that had previously threatened to suspend generation because of outstanding payments were now prepared to invest in an additional 500MW of generation capacity.
However, he said government preferred to develop additional generation capacity under state ownership.
Energy sector debt
President Mahama also said the government had cleared energy-sector debts and reorganised the operations of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) to prioritise payments to power producers.
According to him, the measures had contributed to improved stability in electricity supply.
We brought IPPs, and everybody was threatening to switch off power. Today, I can tell you, we have paid off our energy debts. And we are current with the payments,” he said.
He explained that ECG’s collection and payment arrangements had been reorganised to ensure that payments to electricity generators were prioritised.
Oil and gas investments
The President linked the planned expansion of thermal generation to renewed investment in Ghana’s upstream oil and gas sector.
He said Ghana’s oil production had increased by almost 38% since 2025, following new investments by oil producers.
According to Mahama, the Jubilee Partners are investing about $2 billion to drill 20 new wells, while Eni is investing $1.5 billion to bring the remaining portion of the Sankofa field into production.
He said increased oil and gas production would improve the availability of natural gas for thermal power generation while also increasing government revenues from the petroleum sector.
President Mahama further disclosed that major international oil companies, including ExxonMobil and Shell, were exploring opportunities in Ghana.
The planned 1,200MW thermal project, together with increased investment in domestic oil and gas production, forms part of government’s broader efforts to strengthen Ghana’s electricity generation capacity and secure fuel supplies for thermal power plants.
