Ghana's PHDC Signs MOU for $28-Billion Phase 2 of Jomoro Petroleum Hub

A $28-billion second phase of Ghana's planned downstream petroleum hub moved a step closer on Oct. 19, when the Petroleum Hub Development Corp. (PHDC) signed a memorandum of understanding with an international consortium led by UAE-based Global Sphere FZE.

The MOU, signed on behalf of investors from South Korea, Mali, and the UAE, covers Phase 2 of the three-phased project in the Jomoro municipal district of Ghana's Western Region. If approved, construction would begin within six months of the signing date, PHDC said in a release.

What does Phase 2 actually include?

The agreement sets out the physical scope:

• One 300,000-b/sd refinery
• Two petrochemical plants
• 4 million cu m of storage capacity
• A multi-berth jetty

All four installations would sit under a build-own-operate model, meaning the private consortium retains ownership and operation rather than handing assets to the state.

Phase 2 is the second tranche of a hub designed to deliver, across its full three-phase buildout, three grassroots refineries totaling 900,000 b/sd, five petrochemical plants, 10 million cu m of new storage, and at least two jetties serving imports and exports. Each phase carries one 300,000-b/sd refinery, with expansion headroom to 500,000 b/sd per unit between 2030 and 2035. Gas and refinery-derived products are the planned petrochemical feedstocks.

Who is behind the deal?

Dr. Toni Aubynn, PHDC's chief executive officer, described the MOU as an opportunity to develop Ghana's industrial capacity and create jobs.

Boubacar Belco Bah, representing the investors, said the consortium would work with PHDC, AMS Technologies, the project development consortium, and technical and financial institutions on project preparation and risk allocation. That work includes plans for participation by Ghanaian contractors, professionals, and service providers — the local-content question every service company watching this project will want answered.

The precise identity of AMS Technologies has not been confirmed. PHDC previously disclosed that an investment consortium identified as "AMS/Double Tree Capital Bank" visited its offices in early December 2025 with an expression of interest in Phase 2 investment.

What remains unresolved?

Plenty. PHDC did not specify financing commitments, detailed partner responsibilities, or a commissioning schedule. An MOU is not a final investment decision, and the $28-billion figure remains a proposed value rather than a sanctioned capital commitment. Until financing closes and detailed engineering contracts appear, Phase 2 sits in the project-preparation tier, not the construction tier.

Practitioners should read the six-month construction window as conditional on approval, not as a start date.

Where does Phase 1 stand?

The wider hub, previously estimated at a combined $60 billion for development across a 2024-36 window, occupies a 20,000-acre tract PHDC secured in the Western Region.

PHDC, established in 2020 to oversee the project and channel private-sector investment, signed the Phase 1 agreement in June 2024 with a consortium comprising Touchstone Capital Group Holdings Ltd., UIC Energy Ghana Ltd., China Wuhan Engineering Co. Ltd., and China Construction Third Engineering Bureau Co. Ltd.

Phase 1 — a 300,000-b/sd refinery, one petrochemical plant, 3 million cu m of storage, and jetty and port infrastructure — officially broke ground Aug. 19, 2024, at Nawule in Jomoro.

Why the hub matters

The project serves Ghana's stated objective of expanding domestic processing of its natural resources and cutting reliance on imported petroleum products. Production from the planned hub could also serve markets across Africa, including the African Continental Free Trade Area, according to PHDC, while supporting regional development of port, logistics, utilities, and industrial infrastructure.

For refiners, engineering firms, and storage contractors tracking West African downstream, the signal is straightforward: a second major consortium has now attached itself to one of the continent's largest proposed refining complexes.

The watch item is whether the MOU converts into binding financing and a firm construction start within the six-month window — and what Phase 2's risk-allocation terms mean for Ghanaian service providers.