The Institute of Climate and Environmental Governance (ICEG) has accused the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) of hiding behind tariff hikes instead of fixing its deep-rooted inefficiencies.
This reaction from the Civil Society Organization (CSOs) follows ECG’s requests for it’s Distribution Service Charge (DSC) to be increased by a controversial 225% increment.
This was contained in the power distributor’s proposal to the Public Utility Regulatory Commission (PURC) for consideration into the major tariff adjustment for the 2025-2029 regulatory period.
But ICEG, describing the demands as “monstrous,” argued that requesting such an increment will yield no results until these inefficiencies are addressed.
For the institute, the over-reliance on upward tariff adjustments without considering alternative solutions to raising revenue is enough justification that the foremost power distributor lacks strategic direction.
According to ICEG, ECG’s problems stem from high commercial and technical losses, weak governance, and wastage. Failures of ECG, ICEG says, should not be passed on to consumers in high tariffs.
“ECG’s failure to address the underlying causes of its inefficiencies, which manifest in high commercial and technical losses, a weak governance structure, and wastage, should not be at the expense of the ordinary Ghanaians,” part of the Institute’s statement noted.
It continued, “Requesting such an increment will yield no results until these inefficiencies are addressed. The over-reliance on upward tariff adjustments without considering alternative solutions to raising revenue reveals the lack of strategic direction at ECG.”
However, ICEG did not leave its criticism hanging. The institute is recommending performance-based regulation, loss-reduction programs, and public-private partnerships as more sustainable strategies.
It is also urging the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) to scrutinize ECG’s proposal with public interest at heart.
“ECG should consider options, including performance-based regulation, public-private partnerships for grid upgrades, and aggressive loss-reduction programs,” ICEG noted.
In addition, “Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) should rigorously scrutinize ECG’s proposal by considering public interest and tie its review to standard performance measures.”
