SME Times News Bureau | 22 Feb, 2012

Indian investors are keen to invest as much as $36 million in Ghana's ailing sugar industry, Indian High Commissioner Rajinder Bhagat has said."Indian investors intend to revive Ghana's sugar industry by investing in the establishment of a sugar processing plant. In addition, other Indian investors are also waiting to invest in a potato plantation," said Bhagat in Accra (Ghana).

He hoped that ties between Ghana and India would be strengthened with the investment and participation of Indian investors in the country's economy.

Speaking at a meeting with Ghana's Vice-President John Dramani Mahama, the envoy said India was ready to set up a $1.3 billion fertiliser processing plant in Ghana.

"India is ready with the technical plan and funds to start the project and is only waiting for the green light from the Ghanaian government."

Gas, a key component of the project, is yet to be processed in the country. The Ghanaian government has secured a Chinese Development Bank loan to be used to finance a gas processing plant in the western region where oil production is taking place.

Bhagat appealed to the Ghanaian government to beat down the gas price to facilitate the running of the project, adding that the Indian investors were ready to construct pipelines for drawing gas to support the fertiliser project.

Vice-President Mahama said the Ghana National Gas Company (GNGC) was working to ensure the facility to process gas onshore was completed by the first quarter of next year. On completion, the gas would be used to power the country's industries.

He said the fertiliser project was very important to the government because it was expected to improve fertiliser supply in the country, Mahama said the government would make a case for the GNGC to fix favourable price for gas to enable the feasibility studies to start for the facility to be established by the Indian investors.