President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has said he is thankful for the patience exhibited by Ghanaians as the country is saddled with power outages, otherwise known as 'dumsor' in recent times.

He acknowledged that Ghanaians and businesses had to endure in these 'dumsor' times while government looked for long-lasting solutions to end this problem.

Speaking at the commissioning of the first phase of the Anwomaso 1 Thermal Power Plant in Kumasi on Wednesday, April 17, 2024, President Akufo-Addo said, “I do acknowledge, Minister for Energy, ladies and gentlemen, and Nananom, the challenges that the people of Ashanti and indeed other parts of the country have had to endure in very recent times over the supply of power. And I can only thank you for the patience you have exhibited in the face of these challenges.”

It would be recalled that the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission directed the Electricity Company of Ghana to furnish it with a load management timetable by April 2, 2024.

Amidst escalating concerns over the persistent power cuts across the country, some Ghanaians called on the power distribution company to release a load-shedding timetable. However, it came to no avail.

ECG’s management in a release maintained that the power outages stem from technical difficulties and that no formal load-shedding schedule will be implemented.

In a latest development, the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) has imposed a heavy fine of five million, eight hundred and sixty-eight thousand Ghana Cedis (GH¢5,868,000.00) on members of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) board who served from January 1 to March 18, 2024.

This action was taken due to their violation of Regulation 39 of L.I. 2413, which requires prior notification to consumers before any power interruption.

About the Kumasi 1 Thermal Power Plant

The K1TPP is the decommissioned Ameri Power Plant which had been relocated to Kumasi to provide stable power to the middle and northern belt of the country.

The plant has a capacity of 150 megawatts (MW).

President Akufo-Addo said the commissioning of the plant was a demonstration of the government’s quest to provide sustainable electricity for the nation.

SA/MA