Minority slams gov't on AMERI deal

The Minority on the Mines and Energy Committee of Parliament has condemned government for concealing sections of its agreement with AMERI group for a 250MW power plant.

Pressure is mounting on government to fully disclose the terms of its agreement with the Dubai-based AMERI Group to produce electricity for Ghana.

Over the weekend, there were widespread media reports suggesting that Ghana’s Minister of Power had signed a power deal with a Norwegian fraudster at an inflated cost.

Critics have also descended on the government questioning the depth of due diligence conducted on the matter.

A sticking point, was the cost of the transaction- $510 million – an amount which many viewed as inflated compared to other options.

The Ministry in a statement has, however, refuted the claims, describing the publication as false, misleading and a gross misrepresentation of the facts.

But a member of the committee, William Aidoo stated on Morning Starr, Monday, that the Ministry’s statement on the deal provides details which never came before the House.

“What came before us was nothing to do with the power generation or the fuel or whatever. It was purely a purchased agreement between Ghana and AMERI as to the 10 machines that we were going to pay for over a period of five years because the argument was that we didn’t have money to pay for them outright,” Hon. Aidoo told Morning Starr host Nii Arday Clegg.