PURC demands financial statements of industries

The Public Utilities and Regulatory Commission (PURC) is asking businesses to make available their financial statements to the commission so it knows the extent to which tariff increases affect their operations.

The PURC says the unwillingness of industries to provide such information makes the tariff setting process less transparent.

Businesses have been reeling under the effect of tariff hikes and levies, especially since water and electricity tariffs went up by 67.2 percent and 59.2 per cent respectively in December 2015.

The Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) in its recent Barometer report for the first quarter of 2016, stated that high utility tariffs was a major challenge confronting businesses. AGI members also complain of being made to pay more than they consume. They also have concerns with the quality of service being provided by the Utility Service Providers (USP) saying frequent fluctuations in power supply shortens the life span of their equipment.

The AGI in a bid to address the worries of its members held a forum with the PURC and USPs so they explain the components of the tariffs adjustment formula.

The Director of Regulatory Economics and Research at the PURC, Dr. Simon Akorli, says the commission has in the past attempted getting access to the financial statements of companies “to help us determine the percentage of their cost that is taken up by electricity and water tariffs”, but they were met with stiff opposition from business operators.

He added that the position taken by the AGI members, “makes it hard for the commission to know the true impact of utility tariffs on their operations”.

But some members of the AGI say the PURC’s request cannot be granted on grounds of confidentiality. President of AGI, Seth Twum Akwaboah, however, told Starr Business’ Tawakalitu Braimah that the association would have to interrogate the request because, “if the financial statements are going to make an impact on the determination of the tariff levels, it needs to be justified”.