Feature: Ghana's growing energy sector attracts Chinese firms

Ghana's growing power sector demand has generated lots of interest in some global power sector players, including Chinese power companies.

This was revealed by participants at the POWERLEC Exhibition and Conference which ended here late Saturday to find solutions to Ghana's growing energy needs.

Guangzhou Kusing, a diesel and petrol generator manufacturing firm from Guangzhou, China, was one such company that used the exhibitions to strengthen its market hold in Ghana and West Africa.

Vivian, a representative of the company, told Xinhua that the Ghanaian market was very good and placed a high demand for their products.

"We started supplying generators to Ghana from 2007 until now and Ghanaian market is very nice because in Guangzhou we have Ghanaians coming to our showroom to tell us the market needs good quality products that they can use for a long time," she explained.

She pledged: "So we would like to cooperate with our agents to distribute generators to Ghanaians. Many customers come back every year to buy another generator for another customer. Our future plan is to build a wholesale here and offer good after-sale services so the exhibition is for Ghanaians to know us."

Rato Technology, a gasoline generator manufacturer from Chongqing of China, which has already established a presence in Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt and Morocco, was also at the exhibition to seek an opening in Ghana.

Unlike the other companies, Nanjing Solark, a wholly Renewable Energy company, has also made inroads into Ghana and the West African market.

Jocelyn Yu, Marketing Manager for Solark, said the company already had customers in Togo, Benin and Ghana.

"We have good partners here so that's why we are here. Ghana is a special country and there is the need for electricity. We found some agents here because some end-users cannot contact us or buy from us directly so they have to buy from the agent.

"They need after-sale service and warranty for them so we have the agent here and that is the way we can do the work bigger here in Ghana. The price of solar now is cheap. In China the price of the panels is very low," Yu stated.

Edmund Addo, Chief Operating Officer for Iskus Power, Ghana Limited, local agents for Solark, said the products of the Chinese firm were suitable for Ghana's needs.

"We find our dealership with Solark very interesting because they represent what we call the future. Ideally, they are producing quite an innovative product, solar air condition, which in our part of the world will help a lot of companies, individuals and residential homes," he observed.

Addo is of the view that users of these products stand to save quite a lot in terms of money they spend monthly on electricity, adding that the partnership between the two companies had a very bright future. Endit