NEDCo proposes 113% increment in electricity tariff to Northern parts of Ghana
Wholly-owned subsidiary of the Volta River Authority (VRA), the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo), has proposed a 113% increment in electricity tariffs for utility consumers in the Northern parts of the country.
This is contained in a document detailing the company’s upward tariff review and submitted to the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC).
NEDCo in the said document is requesting for a Distribution Service Charge (DSC) tariff of GHS 67.16/kWh for this year as against the prevailing Distribution Service Charge (DSC) tariff of GHS 31.53/kWh.
According to NEDCo, the request for the proposed tariff charge is to help the company generate enough revenue to cover cost of operations.
Asserting the company has been making huge losses over the years.
For instance, NEDCo asserts it recorded losses of GHS 278m in 2017, with the losses recorded further rising to GHS 343m in 2019 and then to GHS 367m in 2020.
The rationale behind the proposal for a higher tariff charge by NEDCo include the following:
• Annual expansion plans and ongoing Government of Ghana’s nationwide electrification programme
• Uneconomic existing tariff
• Increasing cost of vital materials and equipment relevant to provision of service
• High inflation of 19.4%
• Increasing depreciation of the cedi against the US dollar
• The need to inject capital to reduce system losses
Peruse below details contained in NEDCo’s tariff adjustment proposal to PURC:
NEDCO by Fuaad Dodoo on Scribd
