The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCO) have been requested by Minister of Finance Ken Ofori-Atta, to liaise with the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) “to ensure that the implementation of VAT for residential customers of electricity above the maximum consumption level specified for block charges for lifeline units takes effect on 1 January 2024.

This is in line with Sections 35 and 37 and the First Schedule (9) of Act 870, a statement from the ministry said on 12 December last year. 

“By a copy of this letter, GRA is requested to ensure that it liaises with ECG and NEDCO for the transfer of the revenues collected from the implementation of VAT on the subject matter as part of its domestic VAT collections,” the statement noted.

Meanwhile, power supply is currently erratic across the country, a situation that has led Deputy Minority Leader Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah to say the country is grappling with “a severe case of load shedding, commonly known as ‘dumsor’”.

The situation, the former energy minister noted, “is evidently clear, with 500 MW of load being shed as of tonight, January 9, 2024”.

The Ellembelle MP observed in a statement on Wednesday, 10 January 2023 that “Numerous areas have been plunged into darkness due to the unavailability of gas to fuel thermal plants within the Tema enclave, which can be attributed to financial constraints”.

Specifically, Mr Buah mentioned that the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) “is currently unable to fulfil its payment obligations to the West African Gas Pipeline, which is responsible for transporting gas from Takoradi to Tema for power generation”.

“You can also track the ultimate problem to the weakest link in the value chain – ECG’s inability to pay off-takers”, he explained.

“Compounding” the situation, Mr Buah added, “is the absence of a load-shedding timetable, which hampers households and businesses from planning accordingly”.

To him, the “lack of transparency and communication regarding the power outage schedule only adds to the frustration and inconvenience experienced by the affected population”.

“It is worth highlighting that even during the worst periods of dumsor in the past, the power outage never reached the 500-megawatts threshold currently being shed. Yet, the media associated with the NPP interestingly see this as no ‘dumsor’.”

“Their loud silence on the current situation is deafening”, the lawmaker criticised.

“The Ghana Grid Company must, as a matter of urgency, come out with a load-shedding timetable to allow households and businesses to plan better”, he demanded.

Some Ghanaians have been complaining about the power situation on Facebook for the past three days.