Works on Bulk Power Supply Point progressing steadily

Work on the construction of the Bulk Power Supply Point (BPS) at Pokuase in the Greater Accra Region, the largest in the country, is about 40 per cent complete.

According to the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA), when completed, the project would facilitate the supply of reliable power to 350,000 homes and businesses.

The $60-million project, which is the first among a number of Millennium Challenge Compact (MCC)-funded interventions, will fill a vital infrastructural gap and improve the distribution of electricity to support the financial and technical turnaround capabilities of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG).

This came to light when a team from MiDA and media persons toured the construction site yesterday to assess progress of work.

Reliable power

Briefing the journalists before the tour, the Chief Operations Officer of MiDA, Mr Julius Kwame Kpekpena, said the project was designed to solve unreliable and unavailable power supply challenges facing electricity consumers at Pokuase and its environs.

The project is under the Power Compact Two agreement signed between Ghana and the United States of America (USA).

“At the time we signed the agreement, we were experiencing major power crises. We had challenges with the transmission and problems with the distribution system. Today, the generation problem has been solved and the problem with distribution is what the BPS will address,” he said.

He said the project would stabilise transmission and solve the issue of low voltage experienced by residents and businesses in the project catchment area.

Community benefit

The Member of Parliament for Trobu, Mr Moses Anim, said power was one of the critical ingredients to catalyse economic growth and commended the US government for its tremendous assistance towards the transformation of the power sector in Ghana.

He said technical and commercial losses, which accounted for about 25 per cent of the energy losses in the power distribution system, contributed to low voltage and frequent power outages customers experienced in their homes and businesses.

“A loss of one per cent of power costs $14 million. This is a huge cost and we are happy that this will be over when the project is completed,” Mr Anim said.

Construction

The Country Manager of Elecnor S. A. Ghana, the contractor working on the project, Mr Mateo Perez, said between 30 and 40 per cent of the project cost of $60 million was dedicated to local content, with the rest going into procuring equipment from around the world.

“As contractors, we’re working within the scheduled timelines and I assure you that the project will be handed over on March 5, 2021,” he said.

He said 90 per cent of the workforce were Ghanaians, with 10 per cent of them being women.

Mr Perez said the company had also engaged a number of Ghanaian subcontractors to work on the project.