Ghana becomes a producer of crude oil

Could the extraction of crude oil in Ghana be enough on its own to double their growth rate and provide a funding platform for enormous infrastructure spending? That is the optimistic hope of the government on the day that oil started to flow from an oil field that may have upwards of two billion barrels available.

Oil has the potential to provide new riches for a country that has won plaudits for improved governance and macroeconomic stability. The state plans to allocate some of the revenue from the oil to fund extra spending in education, health care, industry, and infrastructure. But there are many risks too - economic, environment, social and political. Especially if the new wealth from black gold in their oceans flows only to a small minority.

Nigeria and Angola are Africa’s largest oil producers - see this background article from Reuters

Here is a selection of news articles on the arrival of Ghana as an oil producer. Oil is an opportunity and a challenge.

BBC news video: Ghana became the world’s newest oil producer

FT Blog “Beyond the BRICs” Ghana turns on the oil tap

Reuters News: Ghana enters new oil era with Jubilee launch

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Trade Imbalances - Presentation [12 Feb 2009]
Globalisation and EU labour law [3 Feb 2009]
2008 - A Year when Bubbles Burst [31 Dec 2008]
World Oil Market in Review - 2008 [30 Dec 2008]
Economics of energy - over a barrel [22 Dec 2008]
OPEC’s biggest cut [17 Dec 2008]
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The Credit Crunch in Charts [23 Oct 2008]
A great example of how to get fingers burned trading in oil [23 Oct 2008]
Sharp fall in commodity prices [9 Oct 2008]
Another upward spike in inflation [16 Sep 2008]
Crude oil heads below $100 a barrel [9 Sep 2008]
Investing the proceeds of the oil bonanza [8 Sep 2008]
Economic cost of fuel subsidies [17 Aug 2008]
Some Good Radio Programmes [17 Aug 2008]
Oil - a coming supply crunch? [8 Aug 2008]
Light at the end of the pipeline? [16 Jul 2008]
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Global oil industry in figures [12 Jul 2008]
Oil sands - an enviromental catastrophe? [11 Jul 2008]
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High oil prices threaten Asian trade model [7 Jul 2008]
Oil dependency and market failure [3 Jul 2008]
Expectations and oil prices [1 Jul 2008]
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Two heavyweights on the UK economy [19 Jun 2008]
Adjusting to oil price super spikes [11 Jun 2008]
Indonesia to leave OPEC [29 May 2008]
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Pain at the Pumps [22 May 2008]
The Big Question: OPEC [21 May 2008]
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