Energy think tank Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP) has described the arrival of the FPSA John Agyekum Kufuor as timely.

In a statement issued by ACEP, it said: “this signals timely completion of the Sankofa Gye Nyame (SGN) field Development, estimated to produce 2,633,110 barrels of oil in 2017 when production starts in the last quarter of the year.”

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“Though the projected production for 2017 is not significant compared to the existing field, this will contribute to overall fiscal stability in government’s estimates for the year.”

The vessel, which has the capacity to produce 58,000 barrels of oil and 98 million standard cubic feet of gas daily, was named after ex-president John Agyekum Kufour.

It will operate at the Offshore Cape Three Point oilfields in the Western Region.

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The FPSO Kufuor is owned by ENI Oil, Ghana Limited, Vitol Upstream, Ghana Limited and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation. It is expected to sail into Ghanaian waters by April 2017, to start work.

Ghana’s first FPSO was named after the country’s first president, Kwame Nkrumah. The vessel is estimated to cost US$875 million.

The second vessel was named after Professor John Evans Atta Mills.

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According to ACEP this development “signals prospective investors of the oil and gas potential of the country.”

“It is, therefore, important for government to take advantage of the current upstream environment to attract capable companies to sustain oil production. Further bold step will be required to sanction companies holding on to licenses without meeting their minimum work obligation. We recommend that non-performing contracts should be reviewed and, where necessary, relinquishment decisions be urgently taken on inactive blocks to free up space for more serious investors.”

“We further recommend that the Government of Ghana should operationalise the Petroleum Act, 2016 (Act 919) to provide the transparent mechanism for the award of Ghana’s upstream oil and gas licences,” ACEP added.