Ghana Signs Accords With China Ahead of Summit in Beijing

ACCRA (Capital Markets in Africa) – Ghana signed eight cooperation agreements with China following talks between the two nations’ leaders in Beijing ahead of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation that starts Monday.

The package of agreements included the $2 billion infrastructure deal Ghana reached in July with Sinohydro Corp. to improve its roads and develop railways in exchange for bauxite, according to a statement from the office of President Nana Akufo-Addo.

“We are looking seriously at how we can secure sources of long-term finance that will allow us to deal with our infrastructural development,” Akufo-Addo said.

China Harbour Engineering Co. also agreed to build the marine facilities for a liquefied natural-gas terminal in the port of Tema, which the company is currently extending, according to a separate statement late Sunday. Jiangnan Shipyard of China will construct the floating regasification facility, the presidency said in the statement.

When completed, the $350 million project will provide as much as 2 million tons of natural gas per year, and supply about 30 percent of Ghana’s total electricity generating capacity.

Ghana is floating the idea of a $50 billion so-called Century Bond to get infrastructure funding, and would like China to contribute, Akufo-Addo said. The other accords are related to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, aviation, maternal health, construction projects and the supply of police vehicles.

Source: Bloomberg Business News