The Ministry of Energy and Green Transition has announced the temporary suspension of electricity exports to neighbouring countries as Ghana works to stabilise domestic supply following a fire at the Akosombo transmission network. The incident, which occurred at a substation in the Eastern Region, damaged infrastructure with a capacity of about 720 megawatts—representing nearly 70 percent of the transmission linked to the Akosombo Dam.
Deputy Energy Minister Richard Gyan-Mensah, speaking on Channel One Newsroom on Friday, April 24, explained that the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo) are increasing output from available thermal plants to offset the shortfall and maintain grid stability. He stressed that halting exports is an emergency measure aimed at safeguarding local supply.
“This is a brief emergency response. It is not expected to last long. Our partners are aware of the situation, and we must take decisive steps to protect our system. This suspension is one of those measures,” he said. The fire, which broke out on Thursday, April 23, destroyed key components within the substation, with ripple effects on transmission stability across parts of the country, leading to outages in several areas.
Officials say engineers are working to restore full capacity as quickly as possible while mitigating further disruptions. Meanwhile, the Ministry has set up a committee to investigate the cause of the incident and recommend measures to prevent a recurrence.
Source: Juliana Odame Asare
