The recent turnaround success of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo) makes private sector participation in their operations untenable, two trade unions have said.
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) and the Public Utility Workers’ Union (PUWU) said the surge in revenue demonstrated that the utilities could be self-sustaining with proper internal management.
At a joint press briefing in Accra, Mr Joshua Ansah, Secretary General of TUC, said the “Turnaround Programme” had delivered significant results, warning that any move toward Private Sector Participation or privatisation would be counterproductive.
He said ECG’s monthly revenue collections had risen from GH¢900 million to nearly GH¢1.7 billion within six months, representing a growth of about 90 per cent.
Mr Ansah noted that NEDCo had recorded an 8-percentage-point reduction in technical and commercial losses.
He said these figures showed that, with proper management and technical support, the utilities could operate sustainably.
The unions expressed concern over a recent framework submitted to the Ministry of Energy proposing the leasing of distribution networks to private entities.
“The argument that the private sector is more efficient has been debunked by the data we see today.
“If we can double revenue under state management in less than a year, why hand over strategic assets to private interests who prioritise profit over service delivery?” Mr Ansah asked.
He noted that the surge in revenue had also improved liquidity across the energy sector.
