New Producer Group
In December 2018, the New Producers Group held a brainstorming session in Accra, convening Ghanaian government agencies and non-governmental stakeholders, the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), oil companies, and officials from emerging producer countries with onshore projects. The aim of the national seminar was to anticipate how possible successes in exploration onshore in Ghana could affect the operating environment for GNPC.
A summary of the National Seminar is available below.
Mohammed Amin Adam is Ghana’s Minister of State for Finance and a member of parliament for Karaga. He was previously Deputy Minister of Energy and chaired Ghana’s National Energy Transition Committee. He has worked extensively on extractive industries and resource management as a University lecturer, advisor on resource governance and a campaigner for transparency in resource management around the globe. Before working in the Ministry of Energy, Amin Adam was the Founder and Executive Director of the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP).
Dr. Sarpong has been in executive management for nearly thirty-five (35) years.He was Chief Accountant and General Manager, Ghana Food Distribution Corporation (1983-1990),Deputy Managing Director, Produce Buying Company Limited (1990-1994), Deputy ChiefExecutive, Ghana Cocoa Board (1994-1998), Head of Administrative & Financial ServicesDivision, International Cocoa Organisation London (1999-2003), Deputy Managing Directorand Managing Director, Tema Oil Refinery (2003-2009),Executive Chairman, KumasiAsante KotokoFootball Club (2010-2013),Group Chief Executive, Global Haulage GroupLimited (2014-2016). Since January 2017, Dr.Sarpong has served as Chief Executive ofGhana National Petroleum Corporation(GNPC). A result-oriented person,Dr. Sarpong Carried out relevant initiative in the organisations mentioned above to turn around their fortunes.
Dr. Sarpong stepped down as Chair of the New Producers Group Advisory Board in April 2022, after a successful period of leadership, bringing a strong vision and voice to the Group. His successor as Chair will be announced shortly.
Honey Malinga holds a Master of Science in Exploration Geophysics, a diploma in Exploration Geophysics and a Bachelor of Science in Physics. He currently serves as a Director, Directorate of Petroleum, Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, Uganda.
Vandana Gangaram Panday is Director of the Surinamese regulator Staatsolie Hydrocarbon Institute. She previously held various role in Staatsolie, the national oil company of Suriname, including Manager of Offshore Strategy, E&P Strategy, Strategy and Business Development Manager, and
Dr Valérie Marcel is co-founder and director of the New Producers Group. She is an expert on national oil companies, governance, energy transition and emerging strategic issues shaping the energy sector and advises governments and NOCs on these issues. She is a Research Associate at SOAS and an Associate Fellow at Chatham House, and sits on various advisory councils, including at the Natural Resource Governance Institute, the OECD, and the Payne Institute. She served as both Deputy Chair and Chair of the Governing Board of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnerships (REEEP). She was a member of the World Economic Forum's Strategy Officers group and of Columbia University’s Executive Session on the Politics of Extractives. Previously, she led energy research at Chatham House and taught international relations at the Institut d’études politiques (Sciences Po), Paris and Cairo University.
Naadira Ogeer has 20 years industry experience across all aspects of the exploration and production value chain covering both the investors and Government perspective. She is an economic adviser in the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Ocean and Natural Resources Advisory Division. In this capacity, she advises governments in sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific on policy, fiscal regimes, sector regulation and contract negotiations. Naadira also delivers customized training to member countries and is the project lead for the Commonwealth Secretariat in the New Producers Group.
Prior to this role, Naadira worked at BP for 15years in various senior strategy, commercial and planning roles at Group Headquarters (Strategy Advisor – Group Strategy & Policy), Houston (Senior Business Advisor – Upstream Planning), Aberdeen (commercial advisor) and Trinidad (Head - Upstream Commercial Operations, Head of Strategy, Planning and Performance Management). She has been involved in multiple aspects of investment decisions at project, country and company level including managing economic evaluation teams and support for upstream executives on matters of project portfolio decisions.
Patrick has worked on legal reform and governance initiatives in the developing world for more than 20 years for organizations including USAID, the U.S. State Department, the Asian Development Bank, Creative Associates International and The International Center for Transitional Justice. He is a senior visiting fellow at the Center for Law, Energy & Environment at the University of California, Berkeley.
Patrick is an Advisor at NRGI and his work focuses on several core elements of natural resource governance, including the management of state-owned enterprises, legislative and regulatory reform and oil and mining contracts. He coordinates the organization’s emerging work on the implications of climate change for the economies of resource-dependent countries. He contributes extensively to NRGI’s programs of technical assistance to governments and civil society organizations throughout the world, and to NRGI’s capacity development efforts. Patrick is the project lead for the Natural Resources Governance Institute in the New Producers Group.