The President-Elect, John Dramani Mahama, has responded to the country’s ongoing energy challenges, revealing that the outgoing government has left behind a staggering $2.5 billion debt.
In addressing the issues inherited from the current administration, Mahama pointed out that while the government managed to keep the lights on, it did so at a high cost, incurring substantial debt.
He explained that the government failed to pay off outstanding debts to energy suppliers, instead allocating funds to other sectors deemed more urgent.
Mahama expressed concern over the losses incurred by the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), attributing them to poor governance decisions.
“Instead of settling the debts owed to energy suppliers, the government chose to spend money on importing crude oil,” Mahama said.
“They prioritized importing crude oil over investing in our own upstream resources, where we have abundant gas reserves. By developing these resources, we could supply cheaper gas and save the country billions of dollars every year.
“Unfortunately, the government has driven out upstream players, pushing them to seek refuge in neighbouring Côte d’Ivoire.
X-Mobile has exited, and Hesfield, which became AKA, has remained redundant for years.
Talo, with discoveries, needs support to boost production, but instead, the government has engaged in unnecessary arbitration over taxes. The result has been a drastic decline in gas production.”
