John Jinapor
The power sector has recorded a major recovery milestone as two generating units at the Akosombo Hydroelectric Plant return to operation following a recent substation fire that disrupted electricity supply across parts of the country.
The Minister for Energy and Green Transition, John Abdulai Jinapor, announced the development at the Government Accountability Series yesterday, describing the restoration as being ahead of schedule and critical to stabilising the national grid.
According to the Minister, the first unit was successfully restored on Sunday, while a second unit was synchronised to the grid just hours before his address.
He said the development marks a significant turnaround after the fire incident, which had severely constrained power evacuation from the country’s largest hydroelectric facility.
“I am pleased to report that, through emergency technical interventions and sheer determination, the first generating unit was successfully restored yesterday (referring to Sunday). This afternoon, I received confirmation that the second unit has also been synchronised,” Mr. Jinapor said.
He stated that the return of the two units is expected to immediately ease supply deficits that triggered outages in key economic zones, including the Ashanti Region, parts of the Central Region, and the Tema industrial enclave over the past 48 hours.
Mr. Jinapor indicated that work is ongoing to restore the remaining units, noting that technical teams are actively working to bring the third and other units back online “as quickly and safely as possible.”
He commended engineers from the Volta River Authority (VRA) and GRIDCo for their swift response and resilience, revealing that many had worked continuously at the dam site for three days under challenging conditions to bypass damaged infrastructure.
The Minister highlighted the deployment of innovative bypass technology during the emergency, which has proven effective in restoring partial generation capacity and is expected to support the full recovery process.
“With two units now operational, our focus is on restoring the remaining capacity to ensure full system stability,” he added.
A Business Desk Report