The Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Mr Kwame Ntow Amoah, has reaffirmed the corporation’s leadership in revitalising Ghana’s upstream petroleum sector.

He therefore called for bold innovation, stronger collaboration and a renewed national commitment to building local competence.

Delivering opening remarks at the 2025 Local Content Conference and Exhibition in Takoradi, Mr Amoah described GNPC as the cornerstone of Ghana’s exploration and production future, stressing that the Corporation’s focus on research, technology and data-driven exploration was positioning it to play an even greater role in the nation’s energy story.

He stated that for over four decades, GNPC had stood at the centre of Ghana’s upstream story — from the discovery of Jubilee to the rise of new opportunities in the Voltaian Basin, and to “our ongoing march toward operatorship.”

He added that revitalising Ghana’s exploration and production sector demands innovation and reinvention.

The GNPC chief executive commended the Petroleum Commission for sustaining the local content dialogue and described the conference theme, “Revitalising Ghana’s Petroleum Exploration and Production Sector: Driving Innovation and Redefining Local Content for a Competitive Energy Economy,” as both timely and forward-looking.

Mr Amoah outlined a range of initiatives that demonstrate GNPC’s role as an innovation catalyst. He announced progress on the Voltaian Basin Project, aimed at delivering Ghana’s inland drilling programme, and highlighted the completion of the GNPC Research and Technology Centre, envisioned as a regional hub for energy research, data integration, and industry–academia collaboration.

He explained that the corporation was investing in technology, research and people while nurturing innovation that would make GNPC not just a leader but a trailblazer.

The chief executive further revealed GNPC’s ongoing work with the Association of Ghanaian Suppliers in the Petroleum Industry to strengthen vendor partnerships, expand opportunities, and embed local companies across the oil and gas value chain.

He noted that revitalisation and redefinition was about growing together with local enterprises in a mutually beneficial partnership, adding that the corporation wanted the nation’s resources to create real opportunities for the people, businesses and communities.

Mr Amoah emphasised that the revitalisation of Ghana’s petroleum sector was not solely GNPC’s task but a shared national responsibility.

He stressed that the corporation could not do it alone, and to truly drive innovation and redefine local content, alignment was needed across policy, investment and people.

The conference was attended by government leaders, international oil companies, local service providers, investors and academics, setting the tone for three days of dialogue on innovation, financing and sustainability within Ghana’s energy sector.