PURC fines ECG board members GH¢5.8 million for dumsor timetable breaches

The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has been fined hefty sums by the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) for various infractions.

The PURC imposed a GH¢36,000 penalty on ECG for failing to disclose all its bank and investment accounts despite multiple requests.

“The Commission hereby imposes an initial regulatory charge of 3,000 penalty units on ECG per Regulation 45 of LI 2413, amounting to GH¢36,000”, a letter to ECG said adding: “ECG shall pay the initial regulatory charge of GH¢36,000 to the Commission on or before 22 April 2024”.

Regarding the time frame for compliance, the PURC added that after the payment, “for every working day that the requested details remain outstanding, ECG shall pay an additional regulatory charge of 3,000 penalty units, calculated daily until the date of compliance.”

Additionally, the company faces a hefty fine of GH¢5,868,000 for 163 breaches related to the notification and publication of planned outages.

The PURC has decided to pass on the latter fine to ECG's board members, citing the company's financial challenges and the potential impact on service quality.

The board members, in office from January 1 to March 18, 2024, are now accountable for settling the GH¢5,868,000 fine by May 30, 2024.

“The Commission has determined that having regard to the nature of ECG’s ownership and business, the imposition of the penalty of GH¢5,868,000 on ECG would be counter-productive, as payment from ECG’s revenue would have a rebounding adverse effect on quality of service and consumers who pay tariffs to the company, the letter conveyed.

“For that reason, in the interest of justice and to protect the interests of consumers, the Commission shall hold the Board Members of ECG who were in office from 1 January to 18 March 2024 liable for the payment of the GH¢5,868,000.”

Furthermore, ECG has been ordered to pay GH¢446,283,706.29 to Category B beneficiaries under the Cash Waterfall Mechanism.

This amount, representing unpaid revenue from August 2023 to February 2024, must be settled by April 30, 2024, with the board members and management facing liability in case of non-compliance.