By Kwasi Kpodo
ACCRA, Dec 7 (Reuters) – Ghana’s utility regulator increased tariffs for electricity and water by up to 89 percent on Monday in a renewed bid to attract competitive private investment to the sector as the West African nation grapples with a crippling power crisis.
Electricity prices were put up by 59.2 percent and water by between 69 percent and 89 percent depending on usage, the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) said in its first major change in tariffs since 2013.
The increases, which had been delayed for several months to allow the PURC to sensitise the public to the need for such a move, are considered unlikely to cause significant protests.
They take effect from Dec. 14 and are driven largely by a shift from a cheaper hydro-dominated generation mix to thermal power and increasing chemical and power purchase costs incurred by the water company, PURC said in a statement.
“The significant change and the increasing dependency on thermal generation has greatly impacted the cost of electricity generation by the utilities service providers,” it said.
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The West African country is grappling with a chronic power crisis that has crippled industrial growth and forced the government to contract emergency powerships to make up for a supply shortfall of up to 500 megawatts.
Nana Yaa Dzantua, head of external affairs at the PURC, told Reuters that despite the increases, about 32 percent domestic lifeline consumers would still enjoy subsidies on power.
The rises were also in fulfilment of Ghana’s three-year aid deal with the International Monetary Fund which the government signed in April to restore a fiscal balance and fix the power crisis. The pact has reduced the government’s popularity.
