Ghana’s power sector is neck-deep in financial trouble and it’s time to fix it.
Speaking on the KeyPoints, spokesperson for the Ministry of Energy, Richmond Rockson, revealed that Ghana’s power sector is now burdened with GH¢80 billion in debt, while it owes Independent Power Producers (IPPs) over $1.75 billion.
According to him, even worse, ECG one of the sector’s key institutions has reportedly blown through its budget by over GH¢14 billion in just two years.
“In 2023, ECG had a budget of GH¢900 million but ended up spending over GH¢8.3 billion,” the Ministry said. “Then in 2024, they budgeted GH¢1.2 billion and again spent more than GH¢8 billion. That is simply not sustainable.”
The Ministry blames part of the ECG’s challenges on poor financial discipline.
“Even when ECG collected revenue, the real question was: what were they using it for?”
Mr Rockson says the Ministry inherited a fragile and inefficient energy sector, and plans are underway to fix it head-on.
Despite public backlash over a new energy levy especially one without a sunset clause, the government insists this is the only way forward.
“Until we solve these inefficiencies and build a robust sector, we’ll keep losing money,” the official said.
“This is about survival,” he added.
Richmond Rockson responded to concerns raised by citizens and analysts alike, particularly around the absence of a clear expiration date for the new levy.
“But the current administration believes the focus should not be on setting a date. It should be on fixing the deep-rooted challenges in the energy sector.”
The Ministry also emphasized urgency, saying Ghana spends about $1.2 billion every year on liquid fuels alone largely due to a thermal-heavy energy mix.
“Until the debts are cleared, until the bottlenecks are gone, until we fix the gas infrastructure and stabilize ECG’s finances, there’s no point pretending that a five-year window will be enough,” the spokesperson said.
The government insists that transparency first and not timelines, will win public trust this time around.
By Christabel Success Treve
