Ghana Launches Onshore Drilling in Voltaian Basin

The Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) is expanding its exploration strategy to reverse a decline in crude oil production through both onshore drilling and new infrastructure models. Minister for Energy and Green Transition Dr. John Abdulai Jinapor announced that the GNPC and its subsidiary, Explorco, have awarded a contract to begin drilling in the Voltaian Basin within the coming weeks and months.

This onshore initiative represents a strategic shift to diversify exploration beyond established offshore developments like Jubilee, TEN, and Sankofa-Gye Nyame. While the program aims to attract new capital, officials clarified that the drilling is exploratory and does not guarantee commercially recoverable petroleum. Minister Jinapor stated that local participation is essential to ensure public acceptance and prevent community alienation during the extraction process.

Simultaneously, the GNPC is exploring a shared-infrastructure development model to bring marginal and stranded offshore discoveries into production. By pooling resources, the agency intends to reduce costs and make previously uneconomic resources viable. This effort is supported by a recent significant hydrocarbon discovery in the Tano Basin, which has opened a new exploration play for the country.