Used fridges ban unchangeable – Energy commission tells importers

Alfred Ofosu Ahenkorah, Executive Secretary of the Energy Commission, says the ban on importation of second-hand refrigerators cannot be lifted.

According to him, the ban was backed by Legislative Instrument (LI) 1932 (2008) and therefore his outfit could not violate the act.

Importers and exporters in the country recently appealed to Government to lift the ban on the importation of used refrigerators because it had adversely affected their livelihood.

They argued that the majority of Ghanaians cannot purchase the new fridges.

Speaking in an interview with BUSINESS GUIDE, Ofosu Ahenkorah said the ban was enforced because used refrigerators consumed a lot of electricity.

He said a refrigerator contains a compressor which loses 10 percent of its efficiency when it works for a year, explaining that “the energy consumption of a used refrigerator doubles when it works for close to 10 years.

“It does not even matter how slightly the refrigerator has been used, in many cases the appliances are not designed for the tropics and if it is even brand new, it will still consume more electricity,” Ahenkorah said.

He said so far the Commission had transported about 15 seized containers from the Takoradi Port to the scrap yard, adding that nine containers had been moved from Tema, with 50 more to be conveyed later.

Ahenkorah said each container has about 120 used refrigerators.

He added that the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) was collaborating with the Commission and other enforcement agencies to seize used fridges.

“Any container with used fridges that arrives at the port is immediately seized and moved to the scrap yard for destruction.”