FILE PHOTO: Ghana's President Nana Addo Dankwa addresses a news conference at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, February 28, 2018. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke/File Photo

ACCRA (Reuters) - Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo sacked Energy Minister Boakye Agyarko on Monday, a statement from the presidency said, giving no official reason.

Press reports said Agyarko was removed because Akufo-Addo was unhappy with his handling of an agreement to extend an existing five-year deal with United Arab Emirates-based AMERI Energy to operate a 300MW emergency power plant.

The deal has been controversial in Ghana, with critics balking at a price tag of more than half a billion dollars.

Akufo-Addo asked Agyarko to hand over his office to the minister of Lands and Natural Resources, John Peter Amew, until a new appointment is made, the statement said.

The West African country became an energy producer in late 2010, and produces around 180,000 barrels per day mainly from three main fields, which also produce most of Ghana’s gas for power generation.

But intermittent power cuts have been a headache for the government, as demand consistently surges ahead of supply.