Tariffs may change after ECG concession agreement next year – PURC

The Public Utilities Regulatory Commission(PURC) has said it only undertook an interim tariff review that will last for a year following the implementation of the ECG concession agreement in 2019.

Public Utilities Regulatory Commission(PURC) has announced a downward review of electricity tariffs, effective 15th March 2018.

The PURC said in a statement on Monday: “The tariff structure therefore remains the same and will be reviewed in 2019.”

The major tariff review comes after an extensive stakeholder consultations, detailed technical analysis of utility tariff proposals and consideration of inputs and concerns of consumers.

Per the summary of the approved percentage reductions residential consumers will enjoy 17.5% reduction with Non-Residential consumers enjoying 30% with Special Load Tariff Customers (LV, MV & Hv and Mines enjoying 25% and 10% respectively.

Explaining the rationale behind the one year review instead of the normal 2 years, Executive Secretary for the PURC, Mami Dufie Ofori, said the regulator may carry out a proper tariff decision after the concessionaire agreement starts in 2019.

“If you’ll notice, we did the review up to 2018 so from 2019 when the concessionaire agreement takes of operations we’ll be able to determine the way forward. That is why we didn’t embark on any structural changes in the tariffs,” Mami Dufie Ofori, Executive Secretary for the PURC told Kasapa FM’s Akwasi Nsiah in an interview.

Ghana and the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) of the United States signed the second compact worth $498 million in October 2016 to improve the performance of the power sector.

The government lately varied the local content upwards from an initial 20 per cent to 51 per cent mandatory ownership to Ghanaian companies.