The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Ghana’s decision to resume quarterly electricity tariff adjustments will play a critical role in closing the gap in the country’s troubled energy sector.

0

“The resumption of quarterly electricity tariff adjustments, combined with structural reforms, will help reduce the energy sector shortfall and stop the accumulation of new arrears,” the IMF noted in a statement following the conclusion of its recent mission to Ghana, led by Mission Chief Stéphane Roudet.

1

Beyond tariff realignments, the IMF disclosed that the government is undertaking broader reforms to improve governance and transparency, particularly in the management of state-owned enterprises in key sectors like energy, gold, and cocoa.

2

The Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) recently announced a 14.75% rise in electricity tariffs for end-users, alongside a 4.02% increase in water tariffs across all consumer groups.

3

These changes come after the Commission’s regular tariff review process for the first and second quarters of 2025.

4

The PURC attributed the tariff adjustments to several factors, including fluctuations in the exchange rate between the Ghana cedi and the US dollar, inflation, the rising costs of fuel, particularly natural gas, and the current mix of hydro and thermal power generation.

5

The reforms come in the wake of Ghana reaching a staff-level agreement with the IMF on the fourth review of its US$3 billion Extended Credit Facility program. The deal, once approved by the Executive Board, will unlock about US$370 million in additional financial support.

6

The Fund also highlighted that the country is taking steps to address weaknesses in public financial management, advance debt restructuring efforts, and support vulnerable groups amid ongoing economic adjustments.

7

Meanwhile, the Executive Secretary of the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC), has urged the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) to reconsider its decision to increase utility tariffs.

8

He labeled them as unreasonable and unjustified.

9

“If you look at the circumstances surrounding the ECG, there are issues of accountability that render even public procurement processes and laws moot and ineffective. We have almost 2,000 containers unaccounted for, running into hundreds of millions of Cedis.

10

“Then, we turn back and claim we don’t have money, hence being unable to sustain operations. Therefore, we are raising tariffs. This doesn’t add up, and PURC needs to backtrack on the decision.”

11

Amoah further emphasized, “coming back to the consumer to insist we pay more, I can assure will be resisted fiercely.”

12