Major power setback for 4 West African countries as Ghana suspends electricity exports after Akosombo fire

Nii Ayitey Brown 13:10 - 25 April 2026

Ghana has halted electricity exports to neighbouring West African countries following a fire incident at a key Akosombo power facility. Authorities say the move is to stabilise the national grid and prioritise domestic energy supply.

Ghana has suspended electricity exports to neighbouring West African countries after a fire incident disrupted a key transmission facility linked to the Akosombo Dam power system.
Energy authorities say the move is to prioritise domestic supply and stabilise the national grid while engineers assess and repair damaged infrastructure.
The disruption is expected to affect power supply arrangements with countries linked to Ghana through the West African Power Pool system, including Togo, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, and Burkina Faso.

Ghana has temporarily suspended electricity exports to neighbouring countries following the fire outbreak at the transmission facility near the Akosombo hydroelectric dam, aimed at stabilising the country’s national grid and securing domestic power supply.

The decision was confirmed by the spokesperson for the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition, Richmond Rockson, in an interview with Joy FM on Friday, 24th April 2026.

He noted that this development follows the incident at the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo) substation which disrupted operations and knocked out a significant portion of transmission capacity.

The fire, which occurred at a key control facility linked to the Akosombo power system, triggered emergency measures across the national grid.

The suspension of exports, which Mr Rockson says, is part of stabilisation efforts to prioritise local demand while engineers work to restore affected infrastructure.

According to the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition, Ghana has halted all external power supply as a precautionary measure.

“We have stopped exports completely. Once you have an issue domestically, you take care of your home first,” Mr. Rockson said.

He added that all available generation is being redirected to support local consumption. The suspension is expected to affect electricity supply agreements with at least four West African countries that rely on Ghana’s power exports through the West African Power Pool system.

These arrangements typically support cross-border energy stability in the sub-region, particularly during peak demand periods.

Ghana has historically supplied power to neighbouring states including Togo, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, and Burkina Faso through regional interconnections.

Preliminary reports indicate that the fire affected critical control infrastructure, prompting automatic protective shutdowns and grid rebalancing measures.

GRIDCo engineers, alongside emergency response teams, have been deployed to assess damage and restore stability.

The Akosombo facility remains a central node in Ghana’s electricity transmission network, meaning any disruption there has immediate effects across both domestic and regional supply systems.

Update Me