Rationalize hydro generation to benefit Ghanaians, not the export market – COSECA

Energy think tank, Coalition of Stakeholders on Electricity Contracts and Arrangements (COSECA) has said the rationalization of hydro generation in the country should benefit Ghanaians and not the export market.

COSECA also called on the government to improve the generation mix of the hydro component that can reduce electricity tariffs for Ghanaians.

The group therefore entreated the government, through the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC), to rectify this discrepancy by implementing an automatic adjustment mechanism.

In a press release sighted by GhanaWeb Business, COSECA said, "The rains that have caused floods to ordinary Ghanaians ironically have not improved the generation mix with an increased hydro component that potentially can reduce the tariff to the benefit of Ghanaians. COSECA strongly believes that the generation mix has to be rationalized to ensure that the benefit of increased hydro generation is passed on to Ghanaians and not the export market."

"This situation needs to be rectified using the automatic adjustment mechanism to redistribute over and under-recoveries to the benefit of Ghanaians," the release read in part.

It also "observed that only ECG contributes to the provision of reserve margin (18% target as per Energy Commission) required for maintaining reliability of the transmission grid. The cost associated with this reserve margin capacity requirements is substantially borne by customers of ECG, with no payment made by the other bulk customers supplied by VRA and other load-serving entities in the deregulated market as their load share allocation."

Read the press release below;