The acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Kwame Ntow Amoah, has urged industry stakeholders in the oil and gas sector to move beyond compliance and toward capability to ensure that local content becomes the foundation for national operatorship and long-term energy security.
He said it was time local content evolved beyond procurement thresholds and percentage targets and be made to reflect its significance as the true measure of Ghana's readiness to compete regionally and globally.
“Local content must now represent local competence, local capital and local innovation, which are ingredients that will secure Ghana's petroleum future,” Mr Amoah said when he addressed the 2025 Local Content Conference and Exhibition (LCCE) in Takoradi.
The Local Content Conference and Exhibition (LCCE) is an annual event organised by Ghana’s upstream petroleum regulator, the Petroleum Commission (PC) and it serves as a platform for advancing local participation in the upstream petroleum industry.
This year’s event was on the theme: “Revitalising Ghana's Petroleum Exploration and Production Sector: Driving Innovation and Redefining Local Content for a Competitive Energy Economy.”
The Conference offers a platform for industry experts, investors, policymakers and local businesses to network, discuss strategies and explore opportunities to enhance local content development in the industry.
It is also aimed at fostering local content development and collaboration among International Oil Companies (IOCs) and Ghanaian service providers.
GNPC’s role
Mr Amoah said the GNPC’s evolving role as partner and operator remains crucial to shaping Ghana's energy future, stating that the company was redefining local content to reflect its critical role.
He revealed that GNPC's ongoing work across both offshore and onshore basins forms a deliberate plan to achieve full operatorship.
The GNPC CEO said, for example, progress on the Voltaian Basin Project is bringing Ghana closer to its first onshore well, which will mark the country's technical maturity and operational independence.
Highlighting GNPC's transition into a capability-driven national oil company, Mr Amoah stated the imminent completion of the GNPC Research and Technology Centre, envisioned as a regional hub for applied innovation, data integration and industry academia collaboration. He also pointed to the adoption of AI-assisted basin modelling and predictive maintenance as examples of how technology is reshaping exploration efficiency and knowledge transfer within the upstream space.
He noted that the corporation is investing in technology, research and people, nurturing innovation that will make GNPC a leader.
Collaboration
The chief executive reaffirmed GNPC's collaboration with the Association of Ghanaian Suppliers to strengthen vendor participation and embed local enterprises across the value chain.
He stated that the corporation's vision is a value chain that delivers real value to the people of Ghana, adding that revitalisation and redefinition mean growing together with local enterprises in mutually beneficial partnerships.
He called for stronger alignment among policymakers, investors and operators to build the policy and financing frameworks that will sustain Ghana's energy transformation.
He emphasised that there must be collaboration and not competition in capacity building, technology transfer and knowledge sharing, stressing that revitalising the exploration and production sector is both an industry imperative and a national responsibility.
