The Ashanti West Public Relations Officer of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), Benjamin Obeng Antwi, has clarified that the recent power outages in parts of the Ashanti Region are the result of planned maintenance and technical faults, not a return to “dumsor.”
Speaking in an interview with Kofi Boakye on Nkwantannanso on Opemsuo Radio, Mr. Obeng Antwi acknowledged the disruptions over the past two weeks but insisted the situation has been misunderstood.
“What we have experienced is not dumsor. It is planned maintenance,” he stated.
He explained that ECG distributes electricity but depends on supply from the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), which transmits power from producers to ECG’s bulk supply points.
“We sell power, but before we sell it, we must receive it from somewhere else. When GRIDCo faces any challenge in transporting the power, it means we will not get the supply,” he said.
Mr. Obeng Antwi detailed that the Ashanti Region has five bulk supply points under ECG’s supervision: two in Kumasi at Ridge and Anwomaso, one in Konongo, one in Obuasi, and another at Dunkwa, which falls under the Ashanti Region operational area.
According to him, the recent outage was caused by a fault on a major transmission line to the Adowato primary substation.
“That line consists of two cables, and one of them broke. If we had transferred the entire load onto the remaining cable, it would have caused low voltage, affecting Ghana Water’s ability to pump water. For that reason, we could not shift all customers onto the single cable and had to limit supply to selected areas.”
He added that engineers had to shut down the other cable to ensure safety while repair works were carried out.
“If we do not switch it off, it will be dangerous for the workers who are fixing the fault,” he stressed.
Mr. Obeng Antwi assured residents that the major fault has now been rectified and appealed for calm as efforts continue to stabilize supply across affected areas.
“As at now, we have fixed the major fault,” he said.
Source:
opemsuo.com