An energy crisis may hit Ghana soon as the country's electricity supply is barely enough to meet demand, Ghana News Agency reported on Monday.
''Demand for power is 1,290 megawatts while supply is pegged at 1,190 megawatts, making it impossible for the creation of any backup,'' Albert Kan-Dapaah, Ghanian Minister of Energy, was quoted as saying.
He said rainfall last year was low, putting Ghana's largest hydropower station, the Akosombo Dam, in a precarious situation. Also, only 459 out of the 550 megawatts of power generated from a thermal power plant at Aboadze in the Western Region got to the eastern corridor due to poor transmission lines.
''Should there be any breakdown in the power generating units or shortfall in supply, authorities will have to resort to power rationing,'' Kan-Dapaah said.
Ghana sometimes buys power from neighboring Cote d'Ivoire but Abidjan has threatened to cut off supply because of Ghana's inability to pay.
Ghana has been toying with the idea of another hydro plant at Bui in the Brong Ahafo Region and Kan-Dapaah said 500 million dollars would be needed to construct the dam.
''Even if the dam is constructed, its output will only cover loses in the system,'' he said.
As a major power crisis looms, Ghana is compelling its major power user, the Volta Aluminum Company (VALCO), to pay more for electricity it consumes.
VALCO, which operates an aluminum smelter, is a major user of power generated from the Akosombo hydro station.
''The price the company pays for power must bear a direct relation to the cost of producing and transmitting the power to the company,'' said a top government official.
VALCO pays two cents a kilowatt-hour for power produced at five cents.
''What VALCO pays now is too low and is well below production cost and this is no longer acceptable. Also, the allocation of power to the company must be in the context of the nation's overall power requirements,'' said B.J. da Rocha, leader of the government negotiating team with company.
