The Public Utility Workers Union (PUWU) has urged the government to urgently revisit and renegotiate contracts with Independent Power Producers (IPPs), arguing that the current pricing arrangements are a major driver of financial inefficiencies in the energy sector.
Speaking on Citi Eyewitness News on Thursday, May 15, PUWU General Secretary, Timothy Nyame, expressed concern over what he described as a lack of focus on the cost implications of IPP contracts, which he says have become a significant source of revenue leakage.
“There are certain things that we are also raising about the pricing of IPPs… has the government taken the pain to renegotiate the IPP contract with them?” Nyame questioned.
He noted that while public discussions often centre around utility tariffs and fuel supply, little attention is paid to the inflated cost of electricity from IPPs, especially when compared to pricing structures in other African countries.
“These are some of the things that we are mentioning—that the pricing of the IPP is part of the leakages that they have to plug. Nobody is speaking about that. Nobody sees that IPPs should be renegotiated,” he added.
Nyame also raised concerns about the impact of exchange rate fluctuations on power pricing and called for a transition to contracts denominated in Ghana cedis to better reflect local economic conditions.
“Looking at the pricing across Africa—how much some of the IPPs are charging compared with Ghana. Also [changing] the pricing into Ghana cedi. We are not looking at that,” he said.
