The Minister for Energy and Green Transition, Dr John Abdulai Jinapor, says ongoing reforms in Ghana’s energy sector have helped the government clear about $1.47 billion in legacy debt while generating substantial savings for the country.
According to the Minister, the government has also saved approximately $500 million by switching power generation from expensive liquid fuels to relatively cheaper natural gas.
Speaking at a press briefing on Thursday, August 20, Dr Jinapor said reforms to the Cash Waterfall Mechanism had significantly improved payments to Independent Power Producers (IPPs), helping to prevent the accumulation of new arrears.
He explained that before the current administration assumed office, about GH¢6 billion was declared monthly under the Cash Waterfall system, with IPPs receiving only about 42 percent of their invoices.
He said the reforms have increased the monthly amount declared under the mechanism to nearly GH¢15 billion, enabling almost all IPPs to receive about 100 percent of their invoiced payments.
“Because of the work we did together and the policy reforms that we implemented, today we declare close to about 15 billion every month into the Cash Waterfall mechanism and almost all the IPPs receive about 100% of the invoice bills,” he said.
Dr Jinapor said the outstanding energy-sector debt stood at approximately GH¢80 billion when the government took office.
He added that negotiations with IPPs had also resulted in additional savings of about $250 million.
The Minister said the reforms were part of broader efforts to restore financial stability in the energy sector, improve payment discipline and reduce the cost of electricity generation.
He stressed that the government would continue implementing measures aimed at strengthening the financial sustainability of the energy sector while ensuring reliable power supply for consumers and businesses.
