Former Member of Parliament for Sekondi, Andrew Agyapa-Mercer, has issued a critical warning regarding Ghana’s deteriorating electricity transmission infrastructure, emphasizing the urgent need for substantial investment to stabilize the power supply and avert further disruptions. His concerns are rooted in a stark reality – the country’s aging grid poses a significant threat to reliable electricity delivery across Ghana. Mr. Agyapa-Mercer voiced this concern during a recent interview on Newsfile on JoyNews, where he highlighted the persistent gaps within the nation’s transmission network. He stated that successive governments have undertaken efforts to modernize and expand the grid, yet substantial gaps remain, a situation exacerbated by the age of the existing infrastructure. His comments follow a recent nationwide power outage experienced across several regions of Ghana, primarily attributed to a disruption in power transmission lines by the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo) on August 20th. This incident represents the second major outage in August, raising anxieties about the overall resilience of Ghana’s power transmission system. The core of Mr. Agyapa-Mercer’s argument centers on the critical need for investment to substantially upgrade and extend the transmission network. He asserts that the current infrastructure is ‘extremely old’ and demands a considerable increase in investment to meet modern standards and reliably transport electricity across the country. “We have extremely old transmission infrastructure,” he stated, “Governments have repeatedly tried to replace portions of the country’s network, but it’s not complete. There’s still a considerable amount of work that needs to be done to ensure the grid can operate effectively and reliably.” He further questioned the rehabilitation of the switchyard and control room at the affected location, June 29th, stating that the refurbishment had not been sufficient since its initial installation, implying a lack of adequate replacement since the initial setup. Mr. Agyapa-Mercer stressed that the challenge should not be solely a matter of political partisan maneuvering. He argued that inadequate resource allocation for transmission infrastructure continues to negatively impact the power sector, regardless of which political party is in power. “I’m not going to play the politics game,” he asserted, “because you never know tomorrow I may be back there. These issues, to the extent that we are unable to find the resources to invest in the transmission infrastructure to carry our power from point A to B, will still persist.” He emphasized that the government must prioritize mobilizing the necessary financial resources to fund these improvements. He specifically questioned the government’s capacity to effectively undertake these investments, stating that ‘I’m not sure whether Gridco itself can finance this on its own balance sheet, and therefore, clarity regarding the requisite investment should be provided’ . He also cited calls from the Deputy Ranking Member of Parliament’s Energy Committee, the Energy Minister, for a briefing on the causes of the recent disruptions and the measures being implemented to mitigate the situation. Mr. Agyapa-Mercer further indicated that the government is expected to provide a timeline for the expected improvements in the power situation, however, he expressed skepticism regarding the extent to which the required investment is being realized. He concluded by suggesting that the government should provide the benefits of the doubt following an indication that improvements in the power situation may be realized by next month, but he added that he is not confident that the requisite investment is being put in place. The situation underscores the critical need for a comprehensive and sustained investment strategy to modernize Ghana’s electricity transmission network and ensure a stable and reliable power supply for the nation.”}””tags”: [
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Source: MyJoyOnline
