Power tech provider sets up in Ghana
A global player in power and automation technologies, ABB, has established an office in Ghana with a pledge to contribute to the country’s strive for energy efficiency.
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At the launch of the company in Accra, the Chief Executive Officer of ABB Egypt (Near East and Central Africa), Mr Naji Jreijiri, said the company’s “main drive for coming to Ghana is because ABB’s large customer base in Ghana needs to be provided with local and effective support to ensure that the products continue to run efficiently.”
“The stability and the growth we have seen in Ghana these last few years have also encouraged us to come and start our operations and eventually expand ABB’s local activities here, in order to serve neighbouring countries,” he added.
The company
ABB has been in Ghana since the early 1990s and has traditionally been part of the country’s energy sector development, and in fact, many of the company’s equipment are components of Ghana’s electrical network.
With an annual turnover of $40 billion in 2012, ABB is currently in more than 100 countries and employs more than 150,000 around the globe.
The company is present in more than 20 countries in Africa with about 5,200 employees.
The company is aiming to grow its business in the region at least twice as fast as the global gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate in 2015.
Ghana’s energy demands
Ghana’s demand for energy continues to increase, and creates a need to develop the infrastructure for power generation, transmission and distribution.
According to Ghana Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC) figures, the country will need 6,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity by 2020 to meet the growing industrial and consumer demands.
On track with this demand, the government is developing local infrastructure to generate and distribute 5,000MW of power by 2015, to reach 85 per cent electrification.
“ABB is in a unique position to offer a full portfolio of energy efficient solutions to contribute to the growing power demand in Ghana which is driven by industrial and construction sector expansion,” Mr Jreijiri said.
Recounting ABB’s success story, the Charge d’Affaires of the Switzerland Embassy in Ghana, Mr Michel Gottret, said ABB over the years had developed technologies that promoted energy efficiency in the transmission of electricity.
“Ghana could take advantage of ABB’s innovation and cutting-edge technology to become a hub of energy export,” he said.