Electricity plant for Sokoban Wood Enclave
A private energy company, Kwamokau Energy Ghana Ltd, is to construct a six-megawatt plant at the Sokoban Wood Enclave in Kumasi to help ease the power challenges confronting the people of Kumasi.
The plant will use sawmill waste to generate the power.
The Director at the Energy Centre (TEC) at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Prof. Ahmad Addo, told the Daily Graphic that the establishment of the plant followed a research conducted by TEC for the World Bank last year.
The site for the project has been cleared awaiting the arrival of a German engineering team in two weeks to fix the plant.
Prof. Addo disclosed this at the launch of a two-year Master of Science (MSc) programme dubbed: “Energy and Petroleum” (EnPe) project at the KNUST.
The course being funded by the Norwegian government cost 1.5 million dollars and it sought to upgrade the capacity of students and lecturers in renewable energy for the next four years.
Research
The centre last year conducted a research for the Ministry of Energy at the request of the World Bank on the assessment of agricultural residues and sawmill waste for energy generation.
After the research, it came out that the sawmill waste produced in the region and the country could be used to produce a certain quantum of electricity to complement the other sources of electricity for the nation.
The director said after the research, the private entrepreneur took over the project to produce for commercial use.
The company would also establish a wood lot to serve as a source of raw material in case of shortage of raw materials.
Aside from the energy breakthrough, Prof. Addo said TEC was again collaborating with various institutions in the country to conduct research to solve other societal problems.
Capacity building
The Co-ordinator of the MSc “Energy and Petroleum” (EnPe) project, Prof. Samuel Muyiwa Adaramola, explained that the project was to enhance the capacity of both lecturers and students.
He said it was expected that within the next four years, students and other members of the university would take advantage of the project to enhance their competence and also to strengthen an already existing MSc programme.
Gender focus
The MSc project was, among other things, to ensure that many women got the opportunity to enhance their capacity on energy issues since women played key roles in the control of energy at all times.
The Vice Chancellor of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Prof. William Otoo Ellis, reiterated that the university would continue to train the required manpower for various jobs to promote the nation’s productivity.
The Vice Chancellor commended the Norwegian government for the support since the energy sector played a very crucial role in the development of every nation.
He challenged the energy centre to strive to do more research to enhance the development of the other sectors of the economy.
