The country, he said, could harness two big opportunities if attention was paid to natural gas development and new exploration activities.

Speaking at the Petroleum Commission’s (PCs) stake,holder forum on the country’s 10 years milestone as an oil-producing nation, Mr Haas said the first prospect for Ghana was supporting the development of the country’s natural gas potential in the years ahead.

The gas factor

“The use of indigenous gas to deliver reliable power generation promises to unlock significant economic growth and social development for Ghana,” he said.

Mr Haas said if the natural gas potential was properly supported by the right vision and infrastructural investments, “natural gas could be a catalyst for rapid industrialisation. This is a cause that Kosmos has been championing for several years.”

The senior vice-president observed that the second big opportunity was embedded in new exploration, saying, “After discovering the Jubilee Field, Kosmos took what it learned in Ghana to other parts of the world – to places such as Mauritania, Senegal, and Suriname.”

Massive discoveries

He added that “Kosmos replicated its success in Ghana with massive discoveries of natural gas offshore Mauritania and Senegal, where we have found around 50 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. And our exploration in these countries is just getting started.”

The Kosmos senior vice-president expressed the hope that considerable follow-on potential remained offshore Ghana and that Kosmos would play a role in the next series of major oil and gas discoveries.

For the next wave of exploration to take place in Ghana after Jubilee Field, Mr Haas said “the industry and the government will need to work together to negotiate mutually beneficial contracts that reflect the broader industry context.”

In the third straight year of low oil prices, he said, a recovery was still likely, as every project in the industry had to compete for investment.

“At Kosmos, we aim to be a long-term partner, deeply engaged in helping our host countries create a brighter future. If the country is successful, we are successful,” he said. 

The Mahogany-1

Kosmos played the leading role in the discovery of oil offshore Ghana in 2007 with the drilling of the Mahogany-1 well.

“We were also instrumental in the partnership, along with the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation, that developed the Jubilee Field in record time and brought the TEN fields into production on schedule and within budget,” he reminisced.

He said since its arrival in the country in 2004, Kosmos Energy had invested over $4 billion in exploration and development of Ghana’s offshore oil and gas resources.

With both Jubilee and TEN fields on line, Ghana is producing around 150,000 barrels of oil per day, which is expected to increase in the near term.

“I am pleased to say that Ghana is a significant and still relatively new oil producer and exporter, with room to grow,” Mr Haas pointed out.

The blossomed

The senior vice-president also touched on the launch of the Kosmos Innovation Centre (KIC), an initiative that demonstrates the seriousness with which the company took its engagement with the country, a differentiated approach to its social investment.

“The KIC is our way of investing in Ghana’s future beyond oil and gas. Working across the country’s key industries, we are marrying the art of entrepreneurship with the science of innovation to benefit the Ghanaian economy for the long term,” he stated.

He said it was exciting that in its inaugural year, the KIC mentored 44 young entrepreneurs interested in starting businesses to address under-served needs in agriculture, the country’s most important sector and largest employer.

“There is much to be proud of and Kosmos is doing its part for Ghana’s economic growth with our significant investments in Ghana this year, as well as our initiatives in support of Ghana’s development priorities,” he emphasised.