The Head of Communications and Public Affairs at the Energy Ministry, Nana Kofi Oppong Damoah, has said the new AMERI deal pending parliamentary approval is in the best interest of Ghana, as it has led to a reduction in tariffs.

Speaking to Jonas Ofori Yeboah on 12 Live on Class91.3FM on Monday, 30 July 2018, Mr Damoah said: “The NDC signed an agreement or series of agreements and introduced a couple of policies and those agreements and those policies, where did it take your electricity tariffs to? In one day, it was increased by 42 per cent.

“Now the set of arrangements that are being made by this administration, the accusation is that it is too expensive among others, but the reality of it is that, it has reduced tariffs by, in some instances 30 per cent. So, those that are saying that the arrangements that are being made by this government are bad, how come it is rather the deal that has led to reduction in electricity tariffs?”

The Akufo-Addo administration recently began taking steps to amend portions of the controversial $510 million deal signed by the John Mahama administration.

The current government believes that there was no value-for-money in the deal signed by the NDC administration, hence the renegotiations.

The renegotiated deal is expected to be approved by parliament when the House resumes from recess.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has, however, approved the deal. A statement signed by Secretary to the president, Nana Asante Bediatuo, dated 25 July 2018, stated that: “The President of the Republic of Ghana has granted executive approval for the Novation and Amendment Agreement dated July 20, 2018 between (i) the Government of the Republic of Ghana represented by the Minister of Energy (or his authorised representative), (ii) Volta River Authority (VRA), (iii) Africa and Middle East Resource Investment Group (AMERI ENERGY), (iv) Ameri Energy Power Equipment Trading LLC (AMERI EQUIPMENT), (v) Power Projects Sanayi Insaat Ticanet Limited Sirketi (PPR), and (vi) Mytilineos International Trading Company AG (Mytilineos), for operations and maintenance of the existing 250MW AMERI Thermal Plant at Aboadzi, for a period of 15 years.”

The AMERI deal was signed in 2015 and was meant for building power plants, which would be owned and operated by the company for five years before being transferred to the government of Ghana.