Accra, March 11, – The Government is set to procure and install about 1,500 power transformers nationwide to replace obsolete and overloaded equipment as part of measures to improve the reliability of electricity supply.
The deployment, which is expected to begin by the end of March 2026, may lead to temporary service interruptions in some areas but is expected to significantly reduce localised outages across the country.
Mr John Abdulai Jinapor, Minister for Energy and Green Transition, disclosed this during the launch of the Electricity Company of Ghana’s (ECG) 2025–2029 Corporate Strategy in Accra.
He explained that many of the outages experienced in various parts of the country were due to years of underinvestment in electricity distribution infrastructure, which had resulted in ageing and overloaded transformers that could no longer cope with increasing demand.
Mr Jinapor said the Government remained committed to improving power supply reliability, supporting Ghana’s energy transition agenda and strengthening the financial sustainability of the power sector.
“People want reliable power supply. It should not be the case that when it rains the lights go off,” he said.
The Minister noted that electricity demand in Ghana continued to rise due to economic growth, rapid urbanisation and the emergence of new industries, making it necessary to adopt innovative strategies and enhance operational efficiency in the sector.
He stressed that financial sustainability was crucial for the survival of the power sector, explaining that inefficiencies in revenue collection ultimately placed an unfair burden on consumers who paid their electricity bills regularly.
“If you do not collect what is due, then it means that some few people have to pay for what others are not paying for, and that makes the tariff high,” he said.
Mr Jinapor therefore urged public institutions to ensure the prompt payment of electricity bills, noting that electricity supplied to government agencies was not free.
He added that the Government was also exploring new revenue assurance strategies, including the possibility of private sector participation in revenue collection, to improve efficiency and address revenue shortfalls in the sector.
Mr Julius Kpekpena, Acting Managing Director of ECG, said strategic planning had guided the company’s operations since 1988 and continued to shape its approach to addressing the challenges within the electricity distribution system.
He explained that the previous corporate strategy covering 2021 to 2024 had ended, necessitating the introduction of a new strategy to reposition the company for sustainable growth.
Mr Kpekpena noted that despite progress made over the years, ECG still faced several operational and financial challenges, including low revenue collection, high system losses and rising upstream energy costs.
He said management introduced a series of reforms in 2025 aimed at stabilising operations, strengthening financial discipline and improving transparency and accountability within the company.
The reforms included the deployment of enterprise-wide digital systems, improved revenue mobilisation initiatives and measures to enhance system reliability.
According to him, the interventions had already yielded positive outcomes, including a 40 per cent increase in revenue collection, a 50 per cent reduction in overhead costs at the headquarters, and the introduction of an enterprise resource planning system to support integrated operations.
Mr Kpekpena said the 2025–2029 Corporate Strategy was built around five key priorities: cost reduction, revenue improvement, system loss reduction, outage reduction and enhanced customer experience.
“These priorities will guide resource allocation, operational planning and performance management across the company,” he said.
Dr William Amuna, Board Chairman of ECG, said the strategy would serve as a policy framework to guide management decisions, resource allocation and institutional accountability over the next five years.
He emphasised the importance of financial sustainability and strong revenue assurance systems to ensure that electricity supplied was effectively translated into revenue collected.
Dr Amuna added that ECG would prioritise infrastructure upgrades, technology adoption and stronger engagement with customers and stakeholders to improve service delivery.
He called on staff, government, regulators and consumers to support the implementation of the strategy to enable ECG strengthen its role in delivering reliable electricity services to support national development.
GHBUSS
11 March 2026
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