Accra-Tema Expressway project reaches 53% completion, targets August 2027 deadline

The first phase of the Accra-Tema Expressway and Extensions Project has reached 53% completion, with the contractor expected to step up construction activities to meet the scheduled August 2027 deadline.

The $339-million project is aimed at reducing traffic congestion, improving urban transport and enhancing trade links along one of Ghana’s busiest road corridors.

The project is being undertaken in collaboration with the Ministry of Roads and Highways and the Ghana Highway Authority. Accra-Tema Expressway Limited (ATEL) is the concessionaire, while Maripoma Enterprise Limited is responsible for engineering, procurement and construction.

ATEL Chief Executive Officer Louis Harrison said the project was intended to rehabilitate the motorway and restore it to a standard that reflects its significance to Ghana’s economy.

Speaking at a media engagement and the official launch of the company’s website yesterday, Mr Harrison said the motorway, which was opened in 1965, now accommodates about 60,000 vehicles daily, well above the traffic volumes envisaged when it was built.

He noted that the road remained a vital transport link for commuters, businesses and freight operators travelling between Accra and Tema, the country’s major industrial centre and port.

Project operating under 30-year PPP arrangement

Mr Harrison explained that the project was being executed under a 30-year public-private partnership (PPP) toll-road concession.

Under the arrangement, ATEL is expected to finance, reconstruct, expand, operate and maintain the motorway and its extensions in collaboration with the government.

He said the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF) was sponsoring the project, describing the arrangement as an example of how institutional and private-sector financing could support major infrastructure investments without placing the entire financial burden on the state.

Construction progress and scope
The project’s Chief Resident Engineer, Kwabena Bempong, said construction had reached approximately 53% completion after 805 days, although work was slightly behind schedule.

He expressed optimism that Maripoma Enterprise Limited would increase the pace of construction to ensure the project was completed by August 2027.

Mr Bempong said work began in August 2024 and covered approximately 27.7 kilometres across 3 sections. These comprise the 19.5-kilometre stretch currently under construction, a 5.7-kilometre section between Tetteh Quarshie and Apenkwa, and a 2.5-kilometre portion of the N6 near the Tesano Police Station towards Achimota.

He said the first section would feature a two-lane, access-controlled expressway alongside an urban highway with 3 lanes in each direction.

Selected portions would be expanded to 5 lanes in each direction to improve merging and movement between the expressway and the urban highway.

The works also include upgrades to interchanges at Tetteh Quarshie, Teshie, Community 18 and Lashibi, as well as the provision of pedestrian crossing facilities.

Site inspection shows progress on concrete structures

During a site inspection, Project Manager Benjamin Sackey disclosed that concrete structures under the project were approximately 70% complete.

Bennett Akantoa, Deputy Managing Director for Investment at GIIF, described the launch of ATEL’s website as an important step towards improving public access to information about the motorway and its extension works.

Funding arrangements evolved over several years

David Ofosu-Dorte, Senior Partner of AB and David Africa and a member of the project’s Independent Project Advisory team, said the initiative had undergone several financing and procurement processes since 2019 before the current PPP arrangement was established.

He disclosed that earlier assessments had identified a funding viability gap of nearly $100 million, while the abolition of road tolls in November 2021 had affected investor confidence.

According to Mr Ofosu-Dorte, the project was subsequently divided into phases to allow the first section to proceed and provide a foundation for securing financing for the remaining sections.