Gov’t to roll out standardised electricity meters from April

The Ministry of Energy and Green Transition has announced plans to begin the massive distribution of standardised and accurate electricity meters from next month as part of efforts to enhance revenue mobilisation in the power sector.

The exercise will also include the installation of new transformers to improve power supply and stabilise electricity distribution across the country.

Mr. John Abdulai Jinapor, disclosed this while answering questions on the floor of Parliament on Monday, March 16.

“Next month, we will start the large-scale rollout of transformers. Within that same month, we should see a much more massive injection of new, standardised and accurate meters. That is how we can make sure that there is guaranteed revenue for investment.

“All meters procured are tested. I can assure you that these meters are of high quality; they meet the standards, and they do the job they are supposed to do,” he said.

In addition, the Minister said, the shortage of electricity meters in Ghana is being addressed, with more units set to reach consumers in the coming weeks.

Jinapor said the problem arose from a combination of oversubscribed contracts and funding constraints.

“When we assumed office for 2024, even though the ECG board approved about three billion cedis for contracts, more than nine billion cedis had already been awarded, including for meter supply,” he explained, noting that this created a bottleneck in meter delivery.

The Minister also pointed to the cash waterfall mechanism, which governs the allocation of revenue received by the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), as a factor in the delay.

“It means that the revenue ECG was receiving as a portion of its cash water fall allocation was not enough. So some of these meter manufacturing companies who had been given huge contracts could not meet that demand,” he said.

To solve the problem, the Ministry has increased ECG’s monthly allocation from GHS 300 million to GHS 360 million and indexed it to a percentage of the utility’s total revenue collection. This gives ECG an incentive to increase its collections: the more revenue it collects, the higher the allocation it receives.

“If ECG wants to collect more than GHS 360 million, they have to work harder, because the more they collect, the more they get,” Jinapor said.

The Minister reassured the public that meters are now entering the system and distribution will accelerate, while stressing a strategic approach to avoid waste.

“We are on course, and the meters will be made available,” he stated.