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Govt allocates GHC884mil to Power Ministry in 2016 Budget

In 2016, ECG will continue with the sub-transmission, automation (SCADA) and distribution projects and the implementation of Ghana Compact II to put ECG and NEDCo on the path towards operational turn around.

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The Ministry of Power has been allocated a total budgetary allocation of  aGH₵884,269,444.00has been allocated. Out of this, GH₵84,261,186.00 is GoG, GH₵30,645,519.00 is IGF and GH₵769,362,740.00 is from Development

The global coverage of prepayment metering is expected to increase from 40 percent to 75 percent by the end of 2016. As a result of the interventions, the ECG revenue collection is envisaged to increase to 95 percent of current year sales and the debt stock reduced by 10 percent.

The implementation of the six projects under the Millennium

Challenge Compact progressed steadily. Under the Ghana Power Compact, a Transaction Advisor was engaged to advise the Government on the ECG Private Sector Participation activity. The Government will continue to work with the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) and the MCC on the six Compact projects namely; ECG Financial and Operational Turnaround project, NEDCo Financial and Operational Turnaround Project, Access to Electricity Project, Regulatory Strengthening Project, Capacity Building Project, Power Generation Sector Improvement Project and Demand Side Management and Energy

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Efficiency Project.

The Ghana Energy Development and Access Project (GEDAP) 1 and 2 are almost complete with outstanding activities being the prepayment metering projects and ECG Customer Services Management (CMS) system deployment which is 80 percent complete.

In distribution improvement and intensification in ECG and NEDCO operational areas; Geographical Information System (GIS) deployment in ECG & NEDCO areas; Institutional development and capacity building in ECG, NEDCO and regulatory agencies and the Ministry will be implemented underthe GEDAP 3 Projects.

In line with the goal to achieve universal access to electricity by 2020, 550 communities were energised or connected to the national grid as at the end of September, 2015.

The national electricity access rate increased from 75.6 percent in 2014 to 80.5 percent as at September 2015. In 2016, the Ministry intends to connect over 1,500 communities to the national grid from various

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Interventions.

The Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo) constructed and commissioned 2x 7.5 MVA 34.5/11kV substation at the

University for Development Studies (UDS) in Tamale and Kotokrom in Sunyani to improve the quality of supply to its customers. To improve revenue collection, NEDCo initiated the procurement of 90,000 prepayment meters out of which 45,000 meters are currently being installed throughout the NEDCo

Operational Areas.

To improve quality of supply, the Tamale Airport sub-station was

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upgraded from 2.5MVA to 5.5MVA and Water plant substation from 6MVA to 16MVA. NEDCo completed and commissioned these two critical substations in the Tamale Area. To meet the regulatory requirements, NEDCo will commence the construction of seven primary substations at selected sites in 2016.

Renewable Energy Development Programme

In 2015 a total of 272 solar systems were installed in public facilities including schools and community centres located in remote communities without electricity nationwide. In addition, 375 solar systems in remote health facilities (CHP compounds) in 23 districts were also rehabilitated. Government will continue to pursue this programme in 2016.

During the year, 51,000 solar lanterns were procured out of which 41,000 lanterns were distributed at subsidized rates to off-grid communities. The remaining lanterns will be distributed by the end of this year. In 2016, the government will continue to pursue the deployment of solar lanterns nationwide.

The Energy Commission will continue the National Solar Rooftop Programme to bring to reality the government‟s commitment to the deployment of renewable energy solutions and achieve the target of having 200,000 rooftops in the country equipped with solar panels. The target for the coming year is to implement rooftop systems of up to 20,000 buildings.

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The Ministry has also mandated the Energy Commission to lead the process of undertaking a competitive Tender for the procurement of an Independent

Power Producer (IPP) to build a 20MW solar plant for supply of electricity to the

Electricity Company of Ghana. It is expected that this Tender will ensure that solar power is procured at a competitive price, and this will set the scene for cost-effective power procurement in the country.

Installation works commenced for the four pilot mini-grid

electrification projects on the islands of Pediatorkope, Aglakope, Atigagome and Kudorkope. Installation works are about 65 percent complete. Work is expected to be completed by the end of the year. In 2016, the Ministry will scale up this effort to get more mini-grids and stand-alone Renewable Energy Systems deployed in identified remote communities including islands and lakeside communities.

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The draft final report of the feasibility study for the Pwalugu Multipurpose Hydro Project was submitted for review. It is expected that the tendering process for the development of the project will commence in 2016.

Efficient use of electricity is a key aspect of making electricity affordable and safeguard the environment. The Energy Commission has been tasked to lead an initiative to enable MDAs and MMDAs tackle energy use within their offices to ensure that wastage of electricity can be eliminated. This initiative empowers the MDAs and MMDAs to take control of their spending on electricity and reduce these costs by at least 30 percent in the next three years.

Government has initiated a major programme to reduce the frequency and duration of power outages experienced by electricity consumers. The initial programme is targeting the three regions of the Electricity Company of Ghana

(ECG) that have the worst outages record. Working together with the ECG, the programme aims to identify the interventions required to reduce the level of outages occurring and agree on a plan for implementation with the ECG that will be monitored by the Energy Commission.

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