Ghana’s Minister for Energy and Green Transition, Hon. John Abdulai Jinapor, has outlined a comprehensive set of reforms aimed at tackling long-standing operational and financial inefficiencies within the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG).
Addressing Parliament, the Minister said his ministry is implementing policies to reduce waste, curb procurement irregularities, and improve revenue collection across the national power distributor.
Responding to a parliamentary question on measures to address the structural challenges facing ECG, Hon. Jinapor explained that the reforms focus on addressing Aggregate Technical, Commercial, and Collection (ATC&C) losses, which have persistently undermined the company’s profitability and efficiency.
“Mr. Speaker, we’ve been implementing a series of reforms, since assuming office, in order to streamline activities and procurement practices within ECG’s operational area.”
Hon. John Abdulai Jinapor, Minister for Energy and Green Transition
According to the Minister, one of the first steps taken was to realign ECG’s procurement processes to ensure strict compliance with board-approved budgets and eliminate unauthorized contracts.
“We have made it clear that we would not tolerate a situation where management awards contracts outside the remit of the board.”
Hon. John Abdulai Jinapor, Minister for Energy and Green Transition
Hon. Jinapor revealed that a needs assessment exercise had exposed inefficiencies in ECG’s procurement priorities, noting that the utility had an excess supply of some materials while lacking critical components such as transformers.
“Today, ECG has cables that will last 15 years, and yet they do not have transformers.
“So, we’ve realigned their procurement priority to ensure that they really procure what they need.”
Hon. John Abdulai Jinapor, Minister for Energy and Green Transition
To enforce accountability, the Minister disclosed that ECG has terminated 202 non-credible contracts in accordance with the law. This, he said, is part of a broader effort to instil financial discipline and prevent wasteful expenditure within the company.
Enforcing Financial Discipline
On the financial side, the Minister said the government has placed nearly all public institutions on prepaid metering systems, with the exception of a few critical agencies. This policy, he said, has already led to an improvement in ECG’s revenue mobilisation.
“We have ensured that we give them the necessary support, both from Cabinet and Parliament, to be able to go after their monies. So far, their revenues are improving.”
Hon. John Abdulai Jinapor, Minister for Energy and Green Transition
The Ministry has also begun a comprehensive review of all revenue assurance contracts signed by ECG.
Hon. Jinapor said any contract found to be unfit for purpose will be revised or terminated to protect the public purse.
“Most of the revenue assurance contracts that we inherited, we’ve renegotiated them and reduced the rates.
“Those who were charging 4% or 5% are now down to about 2.5%.”
Hon. John Abdulai Jinapor, Minister for Energy and Green Transition
The Ministry has also facilitated the clearance of about 1,500 containers of electrical equipment stuck at Ghana’s ports, with another 1,000 expected to be cleared soon. These materials, Jinapor said, will boost ECG’s network expansion and upgrade efforts.
Highlighting progress in infrastructure, Hon. Jinapor noted that ECG has procured 200 new transformers and replaced obsolete cables that had contributed to power losses.
Improvements in Power Reliability
The Minister pointed to tangible improvements in power reliability, particularly in commercial and industrial zones that were previously plagued by frequent outages.
“Mr. Speaker, I had to appear before this House during the early months of my tenure to answer questions about erratic power supply within the commercial enclave.
“As we speak, we’ve installed a brand new substation there and upgraded the cables. Compared to the initial months, the situation has improved significantly.”
Hon. John Abdulai Jinapor, Minister for Energy and Green Transition
In an effort to reduce corruption and inefficiency, ECG has digitised its payment and revenue systems, reducing human interaction and enhancing transparency.
“Now, if you want to procure ECG credits, you cannot do it on a cash basis. It’s done on an app, online, and in real time.
“As Minister, I can go into the system and see for myself how much is collected and how much they project to collect.”
Hon. John Abdulai Jinapor, Minister for Energy and Green Transition
On the issue of Independent Power Producers (IPPs), the Minister confirmed that his ministry has successfully renegotiated several agreements, reducing overall payment obligations and saving the state significant sums.
Tariff Adjustment
Hon. Jinapor emphasised that while ECG’s technical and commercial losses remain a challenge, not all such losses are transferred to consumers through tariffs. “If you were to do that, you would breed and encourage indiscipline and inefficiency,” he warned.
He explained that ECG is given specific performance benchmarks and targets, and tariff adjustments are linked to their achievement.
“So even as we increase tariffs, we ensure that those tariffs are linked to performance improvements and targets that we set for them.”
Hon. John Abdulai Jinapor, Minister for Energy and Green Transition
The reforms, according to Hon. Jinapor, are part of a broader government strategy to make the Electricity Company of Ghana more efficient, transparent, and financially sustainable, while also aligning the energy sector with the nation’s green transition agenda.
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