Ghana has long grappled with power supply challenges, commonly referred to as ‘Dumsor’, which have persistently plagued both industrial and residential customers. Benjamin Nsiah, an energy policy expert, recently discussed these issues on the Adekyee Mu Nsem morning show on Ahotor 92.3 FM, hosted by Citizen Kofi Owusu in Accra.
Nsiah highlighted several significant issues that have contributed to the ongoing power crisis in Ghana, particularly in the first half of 2021. These issues include tripped transmission lines, which are frequently overloaded, poorly maintained, and lacking redundancy. In March 2021, a fault in a major transmission line led to cascading failures that resulted in a system-wide blackout lasting several hours.
Additionally, reduced water levels at the Bui reservoir have severely limited the output of the 400MW dam, causing electricity quality to deteriorate and leading to repeated outages, particularly in Kumasi. Furthermore, gas and fuel-related outages have been a recurring problem, with at least nine major outages attributed to inadequate fuel stock, gas pressure dips, or other interruptions in fuel supply.
In response to the ongoing power outages, President Akufo-Addo has directed the Volta River Authority (VRA) to reduce the export of electricity to other countries, such as Togo, Benin, and Burkina Faso. This directive underscores the President’s prioritization of domestic energy requirements over potential profits from electricity exports.
Samuel Atta Akyea, Chairman of the Energy Committee of Parliament, commended the President’s directive, emphasizing the need to redirect electricity generated for export back into the national grid to alleviate the current power crisis. Akyea also announced that all major stakeholders in the energy sector would be appearing before Parliament’s Energy Committee to address the ongoing power outages comprehensively.
The upcoming meeting aims to facilitate discussions among key players in the energy value chain and develop strategies to mitigate the challenges facing Ghana’s power sector.
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