Ghana is currently facing intermittent power outages popularly known as ‘Dumsor’
The Executive Director of the Institute for Energy Security (IES), Nana Amoasi VII, says accusing Sunon Asogli Power Plant Limited will not solve the frequent power outages popularly known as ‘Dumsor’.
The Minister of Finance, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, has accused the management of Sunon Asogli Power Plant Limited of acting in “bad faith” for shutting down its plants over debt owed to them.
Speaking to the media at the close of the Annual IMF-World Bank Meetings in Washington, D.C., he said, “Asogli submitted the final agreement for our review. We reviewed it and we are fine with it except for one issue which led to the shutdown. So, when the Ministry of Finance made the one-off payment to all the IPPs, we were supposed to pay Asogli $30 million and subsequently, they made a case for another $30 million but we did not agree to that, so we finalized the negotiations with them on the arrears.
“ECG actually led the negotiations and as part of the settlement, ECG wanted us to pay the $30 million. ECG made a case for which we didn’t agree, so I had meetings with Asogli and we agreed that we would pay, but we wanted them to sign the settlement agreement because this is one of the terms of the agreement and they said no, we should pay before they sign. But if it is part of the settlement agreement, why should I implement an agreement that has not been signed?
“So, we communicated this to ourselves only for Asogli to come and say they no longer wanted $30 million but they wanted $60 million, and that if we don’t pay them, they will shut down.”
Speaking on the Morning Starr with Naa Dedei Tettey, Nana Amoasi VII mentioned that accusations will not solve the problem of intermittent power outages popularly known as ‘Dumsor’ we’re facing currently.
“And the accusations will not resolve the ‘Dumsor’ we are seeing, not at all.”
He further explained that the Finance Minister accused Sunon Asogli of demanding more money out of frustration.
“The statement made by the Finance Minister clearly indicates that he is frustrated, and so it was made out of frustration. However, at this moment, this is not how you act; it will show your desperation to the public. You should rather push and get results.”
Nana Amoasi VII advised that there’s a need for a productive discussion to champion strategic cohesion, adding that at least a substantial amount could be paid to bring Asogli back on board.
