The ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) has signed an agreement to extend a loan facility of 60 million dollars to the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCO).

Dr. George Agyekum Donkor, the President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of EBID, signed on behalf of the bank, while Mr Ebenezer Kofi Essienyi, the Chief Executive Officer of GRIDco, signed for the Company in a ceremony that took place in Lome, Togo, its head office.

Meanwhile, a statement issued by the Bank, indicated that the facility will help to finance the installation and upgrading of transmission lines in Ghana.

Dr. Donkor noted that as the ECOWAS Member States worked toward post-COVID-19 economic recovery, it is necessary to expand regional electricity connectivity to accommodate growth. Therefore, he added that electricity infrastructure expansion in the sub-region is a key sector that must be given the necessary attention.

The Bank’s Total Commitment to Ghana Stand at 250 million Dollars

The President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of EBID noted that the Bank’s total commitment to Ghana stands at 250 million dollars as of October 2022. He thus iterated the Bank’s commitment to continuously finance infrastructure projects across all sectors of the economies of ECOWAS Member States to accelerate recovery and development of the Sub-region.

Mr. Kabral Blay-Amihere, the Chairman of the Board of Directors, GRIDco, noted that projects to be undertaken with EBID’s facility are part of a broader plan to upgrade infrastructure for improved efficiency and increase power transmission within Ghana and other West African countries such as Togo, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, and the Ivory Coast. He also asserted that the project is in line with the Bank’s strategic objectives and aligned perfectly with Ghana’s Agenda for Jobs II.

While appreciating the confidence reposed in GRIDCO by EBID, Mr. Kabral Blay-Amihere noted that the completion of the project would lead to a reduction in technical losses to enhance businesses and livelihoods in Ghana and the ECOWAS sub-region.

Mr. Blay-Amihere commended the President of EBID and his team for their dedication and professionalism that saw the expeditious completion of the credit process and the consummation of the transaction.

EBID is a leading regional investment and development bank, owned by the 15 ECOWAS Member States. These include: Ghana, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, the Ivory Coast, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.

Based in Lomé, Togo, it is committed to financing developmental projects and programmes covering diverse initiatives from infrastructure and basic amenities, rural development and environment, industry, and social services sectors, through its private and public sector windows.

Present at the ceremony were Mr. Kofi Demetia, Ghana’s Ambassador to Togo, Mr Philip Owiredu, the Managing Director of Calbank PLC., and executives from C-Nergy Ghana.