President John Dramani Mahama has insisted government has no intentions of selling the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) as being purported in the media.
Media reports suggest that government plans to sell the ECG due to the mismanagement of the company.
According to the President however, such reports are false and should be disregarded.
President Mahama explained that what government is rather doing is to open the doors for more private companies to invest in the power sector to enhance efficiency.
“Private sector participation in power distribution is not a new thing…Everywhere in the world, private sector participation in many areas hitherto monopolized by government is being encouraged. This is leading to increased investment from the financial sector and the capital market and it is introducing efficiency in those sectors. Power is not different,” the President insisted.
President Mahama made the comment when he commissioned the Enclave Power Company (EPC) on Tuesday.
The Enclave power company is Ghana’s first privately, licensed electricity distribution company.
“When people try to misinform the nation and the public by saying that our carrying out the reform in terms of allowing private sector participation in the distribution of power, by that we are privatizing ECG its absolutely untrue. Government has no intention of privatizing ECG. ECG is still a 100% government owned entity and will remain a 100% government owned entity,” he stated.
Mahama further noted that “nothing in our regulation stops private sector participation in managing concessions to distribute power to customers,” expressing that the commissioning of the company is geared towards ensuring “efficient service than we have had in the past.”
EPC is a privately-owned Ghanaian holding company with assets in excess of about US$100 million.
The company has for the past 15 years been distributing power to over 50 industrial and commercial customers operating within the Free Zones Enclave in Tema and is expected to exceed 80 within the next two years.
The power purchased is transmitted via the transmission lines and sub-stations of the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo).
–
By: Godwin Allotey Akweiteh/citifmonline.com/Ghana