ECG Threatens To Take Public Institutions Off National Grid If…

The Central Regional office of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has given defaulting institutions two weeks to pay debts or be taken off the grid. Defaulting institutions which include the Cape Coast Sports Stadium, the University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast Teaching Hospital and the GETFUND Hostel at the University of Education, Winneba owe the company over GH¢24 million. The company has served demand notices on them and also given them a two-week ultimatum to clear all arrears. The ECG has already disconnected power to some defaulters, including Fruitland Limited at Assin Fosu, Grains Development Board at Winneba and the Ayensu Starch Factory at Bawjaise. Who Owes What They owe ECG between six months and one year in tariffs. The Cape Coast Teaching Hospital alone owes the company GH¢2, 177,859.10 while the Cape Coast Stadium project owes GH¢451,522.26. A number of residential and commercial customers in the Central Region owe the power company GH¢24,824,834 million. Ignored calls The Central Regional Public Relations Officer of ECG, Mr. Isaac Nurris Ainooson noted in an interview that most of the consumers have ignored calls by the ECG on them to pay. He said the exercise formed part of a revenue recovery operations to retrieve the overdue sums owed it by its customers as part of efforts to improve the revenue situation of the company. Mr. Ainooson bemoaned the high sums in arrears, saying the situation was hindering ECG’s operations. “How do we continue to provide safe, quality and reliable power supply when our monies are locked up with customers?” he queried. He explained that the revenue mobilization drive was part of corporate strategies to reduce the size of debt owed by customers and ultimately improve the financial situation of the company and services for customers. He noted that the company was ready to sit with the institutions to agree on an acceptable payment plan. According to the Regional Commercial Manager, Mr. Mawudoefia Dotse Hlorlewu, ECG would exhaust all the available channels and procedures to make sure the last pesewa was retrieved. “We will follow-up with disconnection should they fail to clear all arrears and resort to the courts if need be to retrieve our monies,” he stressed.

Source: Daily Graphic