Energy Sources

1
Comparing the Energy Use of 2 contrasting
countries Ghana New Zealand
Ghana Factfile Population 24 million Population
Growth Rate 1.9 Av. Life Expectancy 60
years GDP 1,800 p.a. Environment Issues
Deforestation for fuelwood, severe drought in the
north
New Zealand Factfile Population 4.2
million Population Growth Rate 0.9 Av. Life
Expectancy 80 years GDP 28,000
p.a. Environment Issues Deforestation for
timber, declining rainfall.
2
GHANA
NEW ZEALAND
Energy Sources
(Wood)
(Geothermal)

Energy Users
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• Main fuels Ghana

• Main fuels New Zealand

• Main Uses Ghana

• Main Uses New Zealand

What do you notice about the Total Energy Demand
in both Ghana and New Zealand. What reasons can
you suggest for this?
Rank the dominant fuels for Ghana, and then for
New Zealand in the lists above. How do you
account for the differences?
Rank the Energy Uses for Ghana, and then for New
Zealand in the lists above. How do you account
for the differences?
4
Energy Comparison
Ghana Electricity Production 8 billion
kWh Electricity Consumption 7 billion
kWh Electricity Exports 755 million kWh Main
source of electricity HEP Oil Production
8,000 bbl/day Oil Consumption 50,000
bbl/day Oil Imports 46,000 bbl/day Oil Proven
reserves 15 million bbl Natural Gas Production
0 Natural Gas imports/exports 0 Natural Gas
Proven Reserves 27 billion cu m Nuclear Power
Stations 0
New Zealand Electricity Production 42 billion
kWh Electricity Consumption 40 billion
kWh Electricity Exports 0 Main source of
electricity HEP Geothermal Oil Production
48,000 bbl/day Oil Consumption 158,000
bbl/day Oil Imports 137,000 bbl/day Oil Proven
reserves 55 million bbl Natural Gas Production
4.5 billion cu m Natural Gas imports/exports
0 Natural Gas Proven Reserves 27 billion cu
m Nuclear Power Stations 0
(figures have been rounded up or down)
5
Ghana Energy Background Despite its lack of
coal, oil or gas and no nuclear power stations,
Ghana was set to be the electricity power-house
of West Africa. In 1966 the Akosombo Dam was
built on the River Volta, creating a huge
reservoir Lake Volta which dominates the
eastern side of the county. The HEP generate from
this was intended to meet all Ghanas needs,
stimulate industrial investment in Aluminium
smelting, and allow Ghana to export surplus
electricity to the rest of W. Africa.
Fact-file aluminium requires very high
temperatures to smelt it from the Bauxite ore.
Aluminium companies will look all over the world
for sources of cheap electricity to set up
aluminium smelters there.

• Ghana Energy Reality
• The impact of the energy policy on Ghana has had
  mixed results
• Ghana has been self-sufficient in electricity for
  over 40 years
• Ghana exports surplus electricity to its
  neighbours Togo Benin for profit
• Ghana attracted industrial development with
  aluminium smelters
• But there are a number of downsides too
• X The creation of Lake Volta flooded large parts
  of the country and 80,000 people had to be moved
• X The man-made lake, one of the largest in the
  world, is silting up, becoming shallower and
  holding less water. The loss of silt entering the
  Gulf of Guinea at the mouth of the R Volta causes
  increased coastal erosion
• X Climate change is having a serious effect on
  Ghanas ability to produce HEP. Increased
  temperatures mean higher levels of evaporation,
  reducing the lake level. And a series of
  disastrous droughts in N. Ghana means the level
  of the lake has fallen below operating levels,
  causing electricity shortages and blackouts not
  just for Ghana, but for much of W. Africa.

The 1997/8 drought brought the lake to an
all-time low resulting in power-cuts for up to 12
hours a day in Ghana. In 2001 the lake level was
just above the minimum needed to generate
electricity. This situation is likely to
intensify as climate change reduces rainfall in
N. Ghana (see BBC report)
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• Ghana Future Energy Options
• Fuelwood
• Already the largest single source of energy for
  many rural Ghanaians collecting wood for fuel
  is leading to serious deforestation. The impacts
  are
• Soil erosion
• Micro-climate changes with reduced transpiration
  ? less rainfall
• Low education levels as children spend time
  collecting fuelwood
• Loss of biodiversity in deforested areas. (see
  Oxfam website)

• Oil Discovery
• In 2007 substantial reserves of oil were
  discovered off the coast of Ghana. The prospect
  of finding this valuable supply may help Ghana
  deal with the crisis over HEP production.
  However, oil supplies in nearby Nigeria have
  caused issues
• considerable pollution of coastal waters
  affecting coastal communities and fishermen
• increasing conflict between the growing wealthy
  and the persistently poor
• kidnapping of oil workers by rural gangs
  ransomed for money from oil companies
• the world price of oil has to stay high to cover
  the expensive costs of oil extraction. At present
  world oil prices are low. (see BBC report)

Alternative Energy China and India are both
investing heavily in Ghana to produce crops for
biofuel. The all-year high temperatures and
tropical rain give great potential. A Mumbai
chemical firm is investing in Jatropha crops to
produce biofuel for the company. But this will
take good quality farmland out of food production
for Ghana. Firms are also exploring the potential
for solar-energy in Ghana but at present no
more than hand-held machines are in use helping
doctors in remote rural areas.
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New Zealand Energy Background

• Early 20th C. main energy source was Coal from
  local mines
• In the 1920s large HEP schemes made electricity
  widely available and by the 1950s was the main
  source of domestic electricity.
• In the 1960s the proposal to dam and raise the
  lake height by 30 m of Lake Manapouri in order to
  generate HEP for an Aluminium smelter was met
  with huge public protest resistance, leading to
  the growth of the NZ environmental movement.
• First oil refinery built in 1967 using imported
  oil. In the 1970s NZ started exploiting its own
  small oil reserves
• In the 1970s NZ started exploiting its offshore
  natural gas fields
• In 1997 NZ signed the Kyoto Protocol agreeing to
  reduce CO2 emissions.
• Severe dry periods in 1992, 2001 and 2003
  reduced NZ capacity to generate HEP, leading to
  country-wide electricity-saving schemes to reduce
  the risk of power-cuts.

Energy demand is growing especially from
Industry and Transport. Domestic demand is
staying reasonably stable. The major sources of
energy are met by reliance on fossil fuels - oil,
natural gas and coal (two thirds of NZ energy
needs) It imports nearly all its oil needs from
the Middle East, SE Asia and Australia. Most of
the oil NZ produces itself is exported (a small
amount) Local natural gas supplies are declining
and cannot be relied upon for future needs (For
the full Energy Report on New Zealand link here)
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• Renewable Energy
• in New Zealand
• The many rivers in NZ especially South Island,
  fed by heavy rainfall in winter, and melting
  glaciers in summer, helps generate vast amounts
  of HEP, producing an increasing proportion of NZs
  renewable energy
• 65 of NZ electricity comes from HEP a very
  high renewable source figure compared with most
  other countries.
• Geo-thermal power is mainly used directly (hot
  water piped to homes and greenhouses for
  horticulture) but is also used to turn turbines
  to generate electricity.
• There are potentially 126 sites on both North
  and South Island which could generate geothermal
  power all associated with tectonic faults in
  this tectonic-activity-rich plate-edge location.
• A major new geothermal power station was opened
  in 2008, and this form of power is seen as the
  best option for meeting NZs growing demand for
  electricity, and meeting its CO2reduction
  commitments.
• It has recently been found that prolonged use of
  geothermal energy sources reduces the temperature
  below ground and some of NZs best tourist
  attractions geysers are less powerful than
  they used to be.
• There is relatively little wind generation,
  biomass or solar energy used in NZ, though
  research is continuing into these energy sources.

Wairakei Geo-thermal power station, N. Island New
Zealand
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• Future Energy in New Zealand
• The future energy strategy in NZ aims to meet the
  following needs
• dependable supply no power-cuts / blackouts /
  fuel shortages
• meeting increased demand for energy as NZ
  continues to develop
• reasonable cost not relying on fuels likely to
  become scarce and therefore expensive
• local environmental impact ensuring that
  energy generation doesnt lead to environmental
  issues in NZ
• global environmental impact reducing the CO2
  footprint for the country as a whole and
  contributing to responsible energy policy
• sustainable fuels which can be relied upon for
  a reasonable amount of time, and which dont
  cause negative consequences.

• The Energy Issues
• Transport is still heavily dependent on oil
  nearly all of which is imported and will become
  more expensive
• Gas supplies will peak in the next few years and
  start to decline
• HEP is threatened by climate change and reduced
  rainfall leading to likely power shortages
• Geothermal energy has potential, but has
  environmental impacts
• NZ has substantial low-grade coal reserves but
  burning this will go against CO2 commitments
• The NZ public are not very energy-efficient
  after being used to decades of cheap, plentiful
  energy. (see BBC report)

• The Energy Strategies
• Encourage use of public transport, ride-sharing,
  and home-working develop vehicles which use a
  blend of oil and biofuels,
• Encourage energy companies to search for new gas
  fields
• Develop coal-fired power stations to use as
  back-up emergency power in periods of low
  rainfall when HEP is reduced.
• Expand the use of geothermal energy
• Only use the coal as last-resort energy
  production invest in clean-coal technology and
  carbon-capture techniques.
• Educate NZ business and public about the need
  for energy conservation e.g house insulation,
  more efficient heating systems

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Ghana and New Zealand Energy Policies Compared
Which of the 2 countries is most likely to be
affected by climate changeand why?
What similarities exist between the Energy
Situations in the 2 countries
What Difference exist between the Energy
Situations in the 2 countries?
Ghana
New Zealand