In order to achieve “100% universal energy access” and maybe export electricity to its “big brother” neighbor, Nigeria, Ghana is actively developing its power sector through policy and initiative implementation and strategic planning.
This was said by Mr. Hanson Monney, the Head of the Ghanaian Ministry of Energy’s Generation and Transmission Unit, in his presentation in Lagos on the second day of the Nigeria Energy Leadership Summit.
Monney emphasized that Ghana has already attained an impressive 80% to 85% universal access to energy within its borders through effective policy drafting and implementation.
In his words,
“So, we are working on all these things to make sure that the power system of Ghana continues to be as good as it is or even better, and then, maybe, we can be exporting more to our big brothers in Nigeria when the grid is finally settled.
So, ladies and gentlemen, this is an overview of the Ghana power system and challenges.”
“So, we are working on all these things to make sure that the power system of Ghana continues to be as good as it is or even better, and then, maybe, we can be exporting more to our big brothers in Nigeria when the grid is finally settled.
So, ladies and gentlemen, this is an overview of the Ghana power system and challenges.”
This declaration follows the second national energy system collapse in Nigeria, the largest country in Africa and the continent’s top oil producer, which resulted in a total blackout of homes and businesses.
In contrast, Ghana is actively pursuing a variety of energy sources, including grid energy, mini-grids, and solar-dominated renewable energy, to attain “Universal access to energy by 2024” as directed by the country’s President.
Ghana’s electrical business faces difficulties
Monney agreed that the geographic limitations make it difficult to provide everyone in Ghana with access to energy, particularly in isolated islands, riverbank, or lakeside villages. In response to this, he stated,
“So, now, we are trying to scale our renewable energy access, and that is how we have planned in 2022 to scale up our renewable energy program.”
Financial sustainability is one of the biggest problems facing Ghana’s power sector, as the country struggles with growing debts and the purchase of excess capacity.
Monney stated,
“There is so much debt that the government has to shore up to make sure that the system is afloat because we have procured a lot of excess capacity, which comes with attendant costs. So, these financial challenges require some policy actions to eliminate legacy debts.”
We seen that previously in Ghana, he said.
The residential sector has being subsidized by these industries when it ought to be the other way around. Businesses should prosper if industries are still viable. Monney mentioned continued attempts to reduce tariffs to address this problem.
