(Ecofin Agency) - Belmet 7, a Ghanaian company, has completed and loaded onshore Tullow Oil’s Gas export manifold for both the offshore Jubilee and TEN oil fields at the West Cape Three Point in the Western Region.

The company is a joint venture between Belmet Ghana and Subsea 7, in which Belmet Ghana owns a 51 percent shareholding and Subsea 7 has a 49 percent shareholding.

According to Loic Chateau, the General Manager of Belmet 7, the gas export manifold is about 145 tons, and the workers on the project included welders, pipe filters amongst others.

Peter Amoo-Bediako, a Principal Marketing and Public Affairs Officer at the Takoradi Port said that one of the most important things about the gas manifold was that the manifold would have been imported and loaded for offshore operation but was instead manufactured by the locals at the Takoradi Port, signifying that Ghanaians are capable of fabricating or developing some of the equipment that can be used in the oil and gas fields.

“The load out of the gas export manifold is to harness both oil and gas that will be piped offshore to be used to generate power. One of our challenges as a country is power generation; the gas coming from this will serve as an alternative and a cheap source for generation of power,” Amoo-Bediako said.

According to him, the Port of Takoradi is well positioned to accomplish its objective of becoming a world class port and the main oil and gas service hub in West Africa.

He noted that the port has been the main logistics support base for Ghana’s oil field-management since 2007, when oil and gas were discovered in commercial quantities.

“If you look at the expansion works, plans are far advance to construct and oil and gas service hub and the super major companies in the oil and gas industry have all committed themselves financially,” he told B&FT news.

Anita Fatunji