Western Naval Command patrols Cape Three Points

Story: Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Takoradi
Tuesday March 25, 2008

THE Western Naval Command has begun patrolling the shores of Cape Three Points where crude oil has been discovered in commercial quantities.
The patrol covers about 65 nautical miles off Cape Three Points in the Ahanta West District of the Western Region where the oil rig is located.
The patrol has become necessary following the invasion of the area by fishermen who use explosives and cast nets around the rig to trap fish at night, a practice which has resulted in the nets entangling the rig, delaying exploration activities and the subsequent increase in the daily cost of exploration.
The Daily Graphic gathered that the minimum daily cost of operations of the rig is $900,000 but the activities of the fishermen have escalated the cost to about $1.6 million a day.
Among the decisions taken by the Naval Command and stakeholders is to position naval officers on the rig, as well as patrol the area regularly.
The district assemblies along the coast where those fishermen come from are also to form advocacy groups, with the help of Kosmos Energy and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), to educate the people.
The Flag Officer Commanding the Western Naval Command, Commodore Frank Daley, said the Navy would take pictures of the fishing canoes and boats which flouted the directives not to fish close to the rigs, adding that offenders would be arrested and handed over to the police for prosecution.
Commodore Daley said it was the responsibility of the Ghana Navy, being the police on the sea, to ensure law and order on the sea.
“The law is that if you see a ship on special operations, you must pass by it,” he stated.
An official of Kosmos Energy gave an instance of a danger that nearly rocked the drilling last Wednesday. He said on that day, a number of fishermen tied their canoes to the rig which nearly caused it to shift from its original position.
The Corporate Affairs Manager of Kosmos Energy, Mr George Sarpong, said the activities of the fishermen in the proximity of the rig were also slowing down its operations.
He said Kosmos was much concerned with the safety of the fishermen, its workers on the rig and the rig itself.
The Base Manager of Kosmos Energy, Mr Michael Dickson, explained that everybody who went within 500 metres of the drilling rig was in a danger zone.
He said the rig had drilled about 2,000 metres below the sea level and that any accident caused by the activities of the fishermen would cause a threat to the lives of 130 workers who were on board the rig.
The Engineering Manager of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Mr Francis B. Ackah, said another drilling rig costing $600 million was expected to arrive at Cape Three Points soon.
He stressed the need to educate the fishermen on the importance of the oil drilling rig and the dangers their activities posed to both the workers and themselves for them to appreciate the enormity of the situation.
The Western Regional Minister, Mr A.E. Amoah, stressed the need for major stakeholders to be proactive and save the situation before any accidents occurred.
The Western Regional Chairman of the National Canoe Fishermen Association, Nana Conduah, said fishing activities in the area were a disgrace to the fisher folks.
He urged the security agencies and other authorities to apply the laws to serve as a deterrent to others.