William Amuna, a former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Grid Company Limited (Gridco), says the rate of increase in Ghana’s peak power demand calls for proper planning by officials in the energy sector in order not to return to the days of power outages.
Ghana’s peak demand in recent times has increased by 127 megawatts even though the country is currently exporting power to its neighbours – Ivory Coast, Togo and Benin, Mr Amuna said.
He disclosed this while speaking at a workshop organized by Siemens Ghana yesterday in Accra themed: “Electricity as a catalyst for growth.”
Noting that Ghana has enough installed capacity to meet its demand currently, he said there is more room for improvement in the sector since an increase in demand could deplete the reserves.
He, therefore, called on investors to take advantage of the demand situation in Ghana and build more power plants, adding that the sector is a big market for investors.
He described Ghana has 85 percent access to electricity in Africa, second only to South Africa.
“1983, 2006 and 2012-2016 have been very bad years and we know its effect on the economy,” he said.
“Ghana, which used to import energy, now has over 25% installed capacity on standby. We need not import power. We export power. In fact, for the past three days, Ghana has been exporting 100 megawatts of power to La Cote d’Ivoire. Togo has similar problems and we export to Togo and Benin.”
He announced plans by Volta Aluminium Company (VALCO) to reopen a second port line by the beginning of May 1, this year and a third pot line later.
Welcoming participants, Edmund Acheampong, Country Manager of Siemens Ghana, said the stimulation in Ghana’s economy was attributable to the steady supply of electricity over the last few months, adding that with 165 years of excellence in innovation and technology, Siemens is equipped with the requisite technology and expertise which would help maximize Ghana’s energy production and supply.
Siemens, which has so far added 330 megawatts of installed capacity to the national grid, said it was working with Rotan Energy, an international energy consortium, to develop some 260 megawatts of thermal power.
By Samuel Boadi