President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo yesterday inaugurated the $40-million African Bitumen Terminal at Tema to boost road construction, as it will help reduce the cost involved in the importation of the product.
The joint venture initiative between Goil Ghana Limited and Socie'te' Multinationale de Bitumes (SMB) of La Cote d'Ivoire will produce the volumes of Polymer Modified Bitumen (PMB), and other bituminous products necessary to meet the demands of the country's growing infrastructure sector.
The terminal has two bitumen storage tanks with the capacity of AC20, 4000 metric tonnes and AC10, 2000 metric tonnes respectively, one blend stock tank with the capacity of 450 metric tonnes, two 15-metric tonne mixing tanks for PMB, three 133-metric tonnes of letdown tanks for PMB and two 133-metric tonnes of emulsions storage tanks.
Included in its main operations are the transfer of bitumen from bitumen tanker vessels at the oil jetty to the terminal, storage of bitumen AC10 and AC20 into dedicated tanks, production of Polymer Modified Bitumen (PMB), Production of Bitumen Emulsions, Laboratory testing for quality of products and distribution of products through bitumen bulk trucks, bitutainers and drums.
Inaugurating the facility, President Akufo-Addo explained that the ability to produce these modified bituminous products domestically meant that the country would reduce construction costs and also improve the quality and longevity of roads in the country.
"Polymer modified bitumen, as some of you may know, offers superior durability and performance, particularly under the extreme weather conditions we sometimes experience," he emphasised.
President Akufo-Addo said the project was evidence of what could be achieved if the sub-region pooled its resources and expertise.
He said the facility had come at a time when his government was undertaking the most expensive expansion of the road network ever seen in the country, which amounts to more than 12,000 kilometres of roads.
"I strongly believe that the contribution of the GAL-SMB bitumen plant will complement fully government's efforts in road construction," he said.
Consequently, he directed the Minister for Roads and Highways, Mr Francis Assenso Boakye, to encourage, as part of the specifications for appropriate bitumen products for road construction, the use of high-grade quality bitumen from the GAL-SMB plant for all major road construction projects in the country.
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"This will ensure that the infrastructure we build today stands the test of time and contributes to the long-term development of Ghana," he emphasised.
For his part, the Minister of State at the Ministry of Energy, Mr Herbert Krappa, said the bitumen plant was not only an achievement for the road sector, but also an opportunity to open up a number of sectors of the economy, particularly the energy sector.
He said it was also an opportunity to promote policies that were consistent with the vision of the President to enable private investors to flourish, stressing that, "And this plant we commission this morning couldn't testify better to anything than this."
Mr Krappa noted that with the plant, the country's petroleum product portfolio was about to open up existing local refineries to enable them to maximise their configuration to process a wider range of crude oils, including heavier grades, to meet demand specifications of the plant.
"This is in line with our national energy strategy, to make it more resilient and more adaptable to global market dynamics," he emphasised.
The Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director of Goil, Mr Kwame Osei Prempeh, said the realisation of the new plant would complement the government's efforts in building the country's road infrastructure.
He said the objective of the establishment of the plant was to play a major role in the road construction sector and provide quality bitumen for the sector.
Mr Prempeh said with the establishment of bitumen plant, steps must be taken to halt the importation of low grade bitumen into the country.
