He maintained that the Atuabo free port project and other oil and gas projects, which his government planned for Western and Eastern Nzema, were to enable the country to derive maximum benefits from oil find.

“We planned building an oil services port at Atuabo, unfortunately there was misunderstanding, our brothers from other political divide took the project to court, stalled it till we left office, which would have been Ghana’s third port,” former President Mahama lamented.

The $700 million project to be constructed by Lonhro Port Limited was expected to be operational in 2017, serve as a regional hub in promoting safe, effective and efficient offshore businesses.

However, five Members of Parliament took the then National Democratic Congress (NDC) government to court over exclusivity clauses and attempts to stop the Takoradi Port from expanding.

But speaking at the palace of the Paramount Chief of Eastern Nzema traditional area, Awulea Amihere Kpanyinli III, on his two-day Thank You tour of the Western Region, former President Mahama insisted that the project was in the best interest of the country saying, “Atuabo free port project would have meant the nation will have world class facilities to support the oil and gas industry.

“The Atuabo free port project is very critical as it will help the oil and gas industry, when NDC returns to power in 2020, we will resurrect and construct it for oil and gas industry have place to receive their services, create employment for youth and also attention given to have petrochemical industry in Western Nzema to give impetus to the port.

“In our plan, the gas processing plant, port and others are in Eastern Nzema, for Western Nzema, we have petrochemical plant, designs are still available, plan will be resurrected in entirety, all projects at par with infrastructure in the area, initiate gas enclave project, all roads where gas plant and ancillary companies are have been tarred,” the former president assured.

Nana Adu Kwame, Chief of Akropong in Ellembelle, said the chiefs and people of Nzema would forever be indebted to the Mahama-led administration for putting the Ghana Gas infrastructure on their land.