The Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Petroleum Commission, Victoria Emeafa Hardcastle, has announced that the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) will commence drilling in the Voltaian Basin petroleum block in the first quarter of 2026.
The initiative is expected to expand Ghana’s petroleum resource base and strengthen the country’s appeal to international investors.
The Voltaian Basin, one of Ghana’s largest onshore sedimentary basins, has long been a key focus of the nation’s petroleum exploration agenda.
Covering approximately 103,600 km², it is the largest sedimentary basin in Ghana. It spans almost one-third of the country’s landmass, extending across the Northern, Savannah, Bono East, North East, Oti, and parts of the Ashanti regions. The basin is centred around the Volta Lake, from which it takes its name.
Madam Hardcastle made the disclosure during a working visit on Friday, August 29, to Zeal Environmental Technologies, a local petroleum services provider, at its Nyankrom plant in the Shama District of the Western Region. She explained that the Petroleum Commission is repositioning Ghana as a competitive investment destination for global oil and gas supermajors, while supporting GNPC to begin operations in the Voltaian Basin.
She further urged indigenous service companies such as Zeal to prepare adequately to assume a greater role in the petroleum value chain, stressing the importance of maximising national benefits from the upcoming drilling.
Established under Act 821 of 2011 following the discovery of petroleum in commercial quantities, the Petroleum Commission is mandated to regulate and manage the utilisation of petroleum resources and to coordinate upstream petroleum policies. The visit to Zeal formed part of efforts to deepen collaboration with local service providers.
Commending Zeal for its pioneering work in petroleum waste management in Ghana’s offshore industry, Madam Hardcastle encouraged the company and others to position themselves to seize emerging opportunities from the Voltaian Basin project.
The Founder and Board Chairman of Zeal Environmental Technologies, Kwaku Ennin, welcomed the Commission’s engagement and called on the government to implement measures to make Ghana’s oil and gas industry more attractive to investors.
The Voltaian Basin is classified as an inland sedimentary basin, distinct from Ghana’s offshore petroleum-rich Tano, Cape Three Points and Keta basins. It is primarily composed of Palaeozoic sedimentary rocks, with formations considered conducive to hydrocarbon accumulation. However, the area remains relatively underexplored, with limited seismic and drilling data.
GNPC has been spearheading exploratory activities in the basin. In 2014, the corporation launched a project to acquire 2D seismic data to assess its hydrocarbon potential. The Mahama administration expressed optimism that the basin could contribute to Ghana’s petroleum reserves and reduce the country’s dependence on offshore fields.
Nonetheless, exploration is capital-intensive, and results to date remain inconclusive compared with the proven offshore Jubilee, TEN and Sankofa fields. Developing the Voltaian Basin could diversify Ghana’s petroleum resource base, stimulate economic activity in the less-developed northern regions, and enhance national energy security.
Experts caution, however, that onshore exploration may impact farming and fishing communities around the basin and requires significant investment with uncertain returns.
Source: By theheraldghana.com