Limited Gas Supply Triggers Nationwide Power Outage In Ghana

Power outage has rocked many parts of Ghana due to a lack of gas to power machinery used to generate electricity in the country.

Gatekeepers News reports that power distribution firm Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo) said the situation has caused “a supply gap of 550MW at peak time” at the Tema power plant, near the capital, Accra.

This is about 10% of the country’s total capacity.

The massive outage which started on Thursday evening, has now been restored in some areas.

Ghana is currently going through its worst economic crisis in a generation, as there are frequent power cuts in Ghana but this is the worst nationwide outage for two years.

The Centre for Socioeconomic Studies (CSS) study showed the power situation, which could worsen in the coming years, has been exacerbated by the country’s financial distress.

In July, independent power producers in the country threatened to shut down operations over arrears owed to them by the state-run Electricity Company of Ghana.

GRIDCo, the power operator, in a statement on Thursday, said electricity supply to consumers in some parts of Ghana would be curtailed as a result of “limited gas supply” to the Tema power plant.

The statement read, “The inconvenience caused is deeply regretted.”

The GRIDCo spokesperson Dzifa Bampoh said it was caused by a problem in the gas supply from Takoradi.

Some reports explained that the issue was that gas suppliers had not been paid.

Meanwhile, the power utility firm did not say how long it would take for normal supplies to resume.

Ghana has for several years been experiencing power shortages popularly known as “dumsor”, which means on and off in the Akan language.