The Ministry of Energy has confirmed that the recovery of the national power grid has reached a critical halfway point, with three out of six generation units at the Akosombo hydro plant now fully restored to service.
The breakthrough comes four days after a catastrophic fire gutted the substation’s control room, an incident that decapitated the nation’s power evacuation capacity and triggered emergency load management across several regions.
Speaking on Tuesday, 28 April 2026, the Ministry’s spokesperson, Richmond Rockson, revealed that the restoration of the third turbine has provided an immediate and substantial boost to the electricity supply.
Mr Rockson emphasised that the technical team faced a crisis without historical precedent in Ghana’s energy sector. He noted that the damage to the control room required engineers to work under extreme pressure to find innovative ways to bypass incinerated infrastructure.
“The good news is that I can confirm to you that earlier today, the third unit came back on stream,” Mr Rockson stated in an interview with Citi FM, marking a 50% restoration of Akosombo’s total generation capacity.
He praised the technical staff for their relentless pace, noting that the sheer speed of the recovery is a testament to the high level of expertise within the Volta River Authority (VRA) and GRIDCo.
“…You could see the zeal and enthusiasm in dealing with a problem that has never occurred in this country. What it means is that we are seeing significant improvements in electricity supply. About 50% of Akosombo’s capacity is now operational, and they are working to restore the rest,” he added.
The Ministry also used the opportunity to address the mounting political friction surrounding the crisis. In recent days, the Minority in Parliament has intensified calls for the dismissal of the Energy Minister, citing incompetence and a failure to prevent the grid collapse.
The Ministry, however, has dismissed these demands as opportunistic. Officials insist that the fire was an unpredictable technical failure and that the “steady progress” made in under 96 hours proves that the government is actively and competently managing the emergency.
The spokesperson reiterated that the focus remains entirely on the technical recovery of the remaining three units rather than political posturing.
With 50% of Akosombo’s capacity now feeding back into the national grid, the Ministry expects a dramatic reduction in the frequency and duration of outages in the Ashanti, Central, and Tema regions.
Engineers are reportedly already at work on the fourth unit, with the goal of returning the nation to full capacity and stable power by the end of the week.
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Source: www.myjoyonline.com