‘Be circumspect in discussing PDS concession agreement’

The Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) has urged the public to be circumspect in their discussions on the brouhaha surrounding the Power Distribution Services (PDS) concession agreement with the government.

The authority advised that in discussing the issues concerning the troubled contract that was now a subject of investigation by the government, it was important to do so with facts rather than drawing conclusions that were not supported by evidence.

A statement issued by MiDA stated that the current development was an unfortunate setback to the progress of the concession and assured the public that it welcomed investigations into the matter.

“MiDA hereby clarifies that each step of the ECG PSP transaction process, prior to the handover of ECG’s distribution business and assets to PDS, was subjected to careful scrutiny and various stakeholder approvals.

“These involved several documents submitted as requirements for the transaction process. In line with best practice in international business transactions, all documents submitted as part of the transaction were accepted on the basis of good faith and the presumption in law as to their validity,” the statement said.

The authority also assured the public that it would continue to work transparently and with a high level of integrity to achieve results in the best interest of the country.

Background

The government suspended the concession agreement with the PDS on Tuesday, July 30, 2019, for what it described as “fundamental and material breaches of PDS’ obligation in the provision of Payment Securities for the transaction,” which had been discovered upon further due diligence.

A statement from the government said a full-scale enquiry into the power concession agreement with PDS Ghana Limited had begun and was expected to last for 30 days.

The statement also said the government had taken steps to ensure that distribution, billing and payment services were not interrupted and assured the public that the development would in no way interfere with electricity services to customers.

In its response, the PDS said it acted in good faith in its dealings with the government of Ghana.