Ghanaians might soon be paying more for electricity as the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) is proposing an increment in tariffs.
The Company says it needs more funds to support its operational activities, hence the request.
The Managing Director of the company, Kwame Agyeman-Budu at a public forum on Thursday, April 8, 2021, said while he is aware that the proposal will only materialize after approval from the Public Utilities and Regulatory Commission (PURC), he believes that it is critical for ECG to have access to more funds to enable it operate efficiently.
Currently, lifeline consumers who are classified as poor and low-income earners pay GHS16 for the power consumed and extra GHS2.13 as service charge, making it a total of about GHS18.
“We need money to do it [improve]. If we get the increase we will love it [but] that will be up to the PURC because, no matter what we propose, they will ultimately decide.”
“In terms of distribution, we need support, because we have to do upgrades to make sure the system is sustainable. We don’t wait till something is broken before we fix it. We need additional funds to upgrade our systems at all times,” he added.
On whether the proposal will not lead to an extra burden on the finances of Ghanaians, Agyeman-Budu said the details will be given should PURC give approval.
Meanwhile, a former ranking member of Parliament’s Mines and Energy committee, Mutawakilu Adam has kicked against the proposal, insisting that the ECG has not demonstrated efficiency in its operations to merit an increase in tariffs.
According to GlobalPetrolPrices.com, a website that publishes energy data from countries around the world, as at September 2020, the price of electricity in Ghana is US$0.064 per kwh for households and US$0.139 for businesses which includes all components of the electricity bill such as the cost of power, distribution and taxes.
