Ghana gets €250 million Euros to upgrade electricity transmission infrastructure

The German Government has given Ghana €250 million Euros to upgrade and expand the country’s electricity transmission infrastructure.

The arrangement evolves from Germany’s Compact with Africa programme, where the European nation has put in place a one billion Euro fund to boost the private sector in Compact countries, of which Ghana is one.

As a result, Siemens, a German power giant, and Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), signed an agreement at the Jubilee House, Accra in the presence of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the Chief Executive Officer of Siemens AG, Mr. Joe Kaeser on Tuesday.

The Memorandum of Understanding was initialled by Mr. Jonathan Amoako-Baah, CEO of the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), on behalf of the Government of Ghana, and by Sabine Dall’Omo, a representative of Siemens.

The MoU enjoins the two companies to collaborate to improve Ghana’s electricity grid capacity and stability and to ensure that the country expands her ability to export power to neighbouring countries in West Africa, such as Burkina Faso, Togo and Benin.

President Akufo-Addo who was happy about the deal, said it was an important development in Ghana’s energy sector, adding that Ghana benefiting from the ‘Compact with Africa’ programme, was a big vote of confidence in the country.

He said the project would inure immensely to Ghana’s industrialization drive that would be hinged heavily on reliable accessibility to power, pledging that Ghana would make sure that the project comes to proper conclusion.

Mr. Joe Kaeser was confident that the agreement would enable Ghana to modernize its grid infrastructure to bring power to the people in a more efficient way, and thus help Ghana build the country for the future.