Energy Ministry assures of no dumsor during Christmas festivities

Deputy Energy Minister Richard Gyan Mensah says the government has put measures in place to prevent power outages during Christmas, citing added generation capacity and tighter coordination.

He said authorities are working to ensure electricity demand during the festive season does not exceed supply, noting that additional generation plants are being brought on stream to support the national grid.

“We don’t want a situation where demand surpasses supply. That is why we are consistently making sure that we have additional generation plants on board,” Mr Mensah said during a tour of the Anwiaso Power Station in the Ashanti Region on Tuesday.

According to him, the Christmas period comes with increased electricity consumption as households, churches and businesses intensify activities, making proactive planning critical.

“Within the festivities too, I have already spoken to the engineers on-site that they should also be mindful of the occasion because we are in the Christmas season,” he said. “The festivities require a lot of energy to make sure that we fully enjoy Christmas.”

Mr Mensah stressed that while the goal is to keep the lights on throughout the season, there could be instances where brief power interruptions may be necessary for technical reasons. In such cases, he said, clear communication with the public would be essential.

“They should be mindful and communicate. When there is a need for them to take power briefly, there should be clear communication to the people so that the activities that we are undertaking will not bring any adverse effects,” he added.

The Deputy Energy Minister said the government remains committed to strengthening generation and transmission infrastructure to avoid the load management challenges experienced in previous years.

“There is a commitment from government to make sure we keep the lights on and that is exactly what we are heading towards,” he said, pointing to plans to add more capacity across the country.

He referenced comments by the Energy Minister, indicating that further investments are expected not only in Kumasi but also in other parts of Ghana to stabilise supply nationwide.

“As the Energy Minister said, we will continue to bring even more capacity in Kumasi and other parts of Ghana so that we don’t have to manage load like we have done in the past,” Mr Mensah stated.

The tour of the Anwiaso Power Station formed part of efforts by the Energy Ministry to assess the readiness of key facilities ahead of the peak festive demand period and to engage engineers on maintaining reliability through the holidays.