The inspection focused on infrastructure rehabilitation, dry dock performance, equipment modernisation, workforce capacity, and compliance with international maritime standards to strengthen its technical capabilities and attract higher-tonnage vessels. 

Dr George Sipa-Adjah Yankeh, Board Chairman of PSC Tema Shipyard Limited, observed that the dry dock had deteriorated substantially in recent years, limiting its operational efficiency and competitiveness; however, strategic interventions initiated in 2025 have reversed that trajectory, resulting in active docking operations and renewed industry confidence. 

Dr Yankeh underscored the Board’s commitment to modernising the facility through the acquisition and installation of contemporary marine engineering equipment, saying that transforming the shipyard into an advanced repair centre was essential to positioning it as a critical economic asset capable of generating foreign exchange for Ghana. 

He said with sustained government backing, the Board intends to fully revitalise the yard, stating that “we want to make the shipyard and dry dock the human gold board of Ghana; we want to service and sell our services and earn foreign currency for this country.  

The Chairman commended management for procuring key equipment to enhance operational efficiency, with additional machinery remaining in the procurement pipeline, assuring stakeholders that the board would take decisive measures to ensure the facility emerged as one of Africa’s leading ship repair centres within the next two years. 

Dr Osman Sulemana, the Chief Executive Officer of PSC Tema Shipyard Limited, highlighted the scale of transformation undertaken since assuming office, disclosing that critical infrastructure, including the pump house, was previously unfit for purpose, but rehabilitation works were now approximately 80 per cent complete. 

He added that Dock One lacked essential structural components when the current management took over, adding that it had received an upgrade. 

He noted that while Dock Two had remained non-operational for nearly three years, it was restored within six weeks of taking office, enabling the yard to resume full docking activities. 

He said the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) was the first major beneficiary of the restored dock and had successfully serviced nine vessels, expressing confidence that with the help of the Board Chairman, the shipyard would be revamped to operate fully. 

“If you look at the giraffe crane that Dr Kwame Nkrumah put in place for almost over 60 years or 50 years now, we require that it will be able to support most of the operations at the dock because that is the heart. We’re beginning a procurement process to see the level of arrangement, whether to buy it off or maybe some level of an agreement on a hire-purchase basis,” he stated.  

Mr Peter Mensah, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of PSC Tema Shipyard Limited, reaffirmed the facility’s strategic importance to Ghana’s maritime industry, describing it as home to the largest graving dock in West Africa, complemented by a functional slipway capable of handling a broad range of vessels. 

He indicated that management was undertaking a comprehensive modernisation programme aimed at restoring the yard’s competitiveness by ensuring that there would be a replacement of obsolete and malfunctioning machinery to improve operational efficiency, attract more vessels from across the globe and increase patronage to enhance revenue generation for the country. 

The deputy CEO also said technical steps were underway to redesign and upgrade the shipyard’s water pumping systems, which had  reduced the time required to pump water out of the graving dock from six days to approximately six hours, and expressed the hope that Dr Kwame Nkrumah’s vision of shipbuilders would be realised under President John Dramani Mahama.