‘Dumsor’ looms as more IPPS plan a shutdown

Consumers of electricity are being advised to brace themselves for erratic power supply as Independent Power Producers (IPPs) move to shut down more power plants.

Speaking on GHOne TV with Lily Mohammed, Chief Executive Officer of the IPPs, Dr. Elikplim Apetorgbor highlighted the severity of the situation owing to the government’s inability to honour its financial obligations to the Independent Power Producers which impacts their operations negatively.

“Sunon Asogli is still idle and we are not working. We’ve actually been following up on the government for our expected payment but it’s not coming and no reasons have been assigned. For us, it’s gotten to the point that we cannot simply work if we do not receive the money.”

He emphasized that no one should take their position out of context and see it as an act of sabotage. “It is not a punishment for the government, it’s just the real situation that we do not have the required working capital to work with”, Dr. Elikplim noted.

When asked as to whether more IPPs are likely to follow with a shutdown just as Sunon Asogli, the CEO responded in the affirmative indicating that by the end of this week if no payments are made three more plants will cease operation.

“That is the reality of the situation, it’s a general problem. For the whole of 2024, we received less than 30 percent of our monthly invoices. It is a very critical situation, if nothing is done before the end of this week, next week I can tell you three more IPPs will shut down”, Dr. Apetorgbor emphasized.

Executive Director for the Centre for Energy Management and Analytics and a Senior Lecturer, at the Institute for Oil and Gas Studies, University of Cape Coast, Dr. Shafic Suleman, underscored that energy is crucial in the socioeconomic development of any country and hence must be treated with all seriousness through openness and accountability.

“Transparency and accountability with the cash waterfall mechanism is key for the success of the energy sector. The IPPs are major stakeholders in the power generation mix so if they don’t have a representation on the cash waterfall mechanism committee it’s a big problem.

“The opaque operation of the cash waterfall mechanism has been one of the major problems in the power sector. The IPPs must be on the cash waterfall mechanism committee to know how much is generated and what constitutes their portion. That will inform them on how to plan their business”, Dr. Shafic stressed.

The government is therefore being urged to take a decisive step in resolving the energy conundrum to avert plunging the country into total darkness.

Source: Starrfm.com.gh