President Akufo-Addo (middle) with the board members of the Public Utility Regulatory Commission (PURC) at the Jubilee House.
President Akufo-Addo has asked members of the newly constituted Governing Board of the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) to do all within their mandate to protect the interest of consumers.
The PURC, according to him, appears to be mostly efficient when it comes to the review of utility prices, literally neglecting their function of protecting the interest of the ordinary Ghanaian when it comes to services delivered by utility service providers.
He has, therefore, tasked the PURC Board to change the perception that the commission’s only function is for the upward review of utility tariffs, and do more to protect consumers.
“As the newly constituted board and in accordance with Act 538, the Ghanaian people demand that you protect their interest. In consonance with section 13 of the Act, I urge you to ensure that where a public utility provider fails to meet any required standard of performance, it is appropriately and duly sanctioned,” he charged them.
This was after administering the oaths of office and secrecy to members of the board during their swearing in at the Jubilee House (presidency) Friday evening.
“It would appear that the other functions, primarily, to do with the protection interest of the consumer and the delivery of quality services by the utility providers have been largely overlooked by the PURC. This perception can no longer be allowed to fester. It must change,” he pointed out.
The President assured the board that in accordance with the dictates of the Act that established them, there will be no interference by government as they go about their duties.
He was however, quick to add that “at the same time, the statutory composition of the board demonstrates amply the necessity of thorough stakeholder consultation in the successful fulfilment of the commission’s mandate.”
Assurance
On his part, Chairman of the newly constituted PURC Board, Ebo B. Quagrainie, said during their tenure, they want to engage in discussions on the tariffs structure for electricity and water with all stakeholders.
It was his hope that the President will support them in championing gas price reduction in order to bring down utility tariffs in the country.
“We will also boost our engagement with stakeholders keeping in mind that the tariff regime would have to have a cost recovery as the underlining theme to promote efficiency and growth in the energy sector. The Commission will also ensure that our monitoring and compliance areas of the utilities are monitored closely to ensure high operational efficiency,” he said.
Members
The newly constituted Governing Board of the PURC has Mami Dufie Ofori as its Executive Secretary, with Dr. Kwabena Nyarko Otoo, a representative of the Trade Union Congress, Dr. Yaw Adu Gyamfi, representative of the Association of Ghana Industries and Patrick Nyarko, representing the Consumer Protection Agency, Professor Joe Amoako- Tuffour, Ishmael Edjekumhene, Dr. Nii Darko Kobina Asante, and Dora Oppong as members.
The PURC
The Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) was established in October 1997 under the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission Act, 1997 (Act 538) as a multi-sector regulator to regulate the provision of electricity and water utility services.
The establishment of the Commission was part of the Government of Ghana’s utility sector reform process. By virtue of the Energy Commission Act, 1997 (Act 541) PURC also regulates transportation of natural gas services.
Under Section 4 of Act 538, PURC is an independent body and is not subject to the control of any authority in the performance of its functions.
The Commission however submits annual operational and financial reports to Parliament. The Office of the President also exercises some administrative oversight for the Commission.
The PURC has as its vision to be a model utility regulatory institution in Africa Mission by building a credible and sustainable utility regulatory regime that protects stakeholders’ interests.
Functions of PURC
In summary, PURC’s key tasks are to provide guidelines for rates to be charged for the provision of utility services, examine and approve utility rates, protect the interest of consumers and providers of utility services.
The PURC also monitors and enforce standards of performance for provision of utility services, promote fair competition among public utilities, receive, investigate and settle complaints relating to utility services, and advise any person or authority in respect of any public utility.
Regulated Companies
Entities directly regulated by the PURC are the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), the Ghana National Gas Company Ltd. (GNGC), the Electricity Company of Ghana Ltd. (ECG), Northern Electricity Distribution Company Ltd. (NEDCo), Enclave Power Company Ltd. and Ghana Water Company Ltd. (GWCL).
The PURC regulates other public utilities in generation by approving the Bulk Generation Tariffs (BGT) payable to them by distribution companies, reviewing the reasonableness of pricing under Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), and monitoring their quality of service.
By Charles Takyi-Boadu