Afenyo-Markin Breaks Silence on ECG’s Financial Crisis, Reveals Reforms He Pushed as Board Chairman

The management of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has praised Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin for his contributions during his brief tenure as the company’s Board Chairman, particularly his efforts to improve financial accountability, procurement procedures and operational performance.

The recognition was referenced in an invitation dated September 15, 2026, from ECG Managing Director Kwame Kpekpena, inviting Afenyo-Markin to a luncheon organised in honour of the company’s former managing directors and board chairpersons.

Afenyo-Markin attended the event at the Accra Marriott Hotel on September 23, 2026, where he discussed the financial and operational difficulties confronting the electricity distributor and proposed measures to strengthen its long-term sustainability.

He served as ECG Board Chairman from September 29, 2024, to January 6, 2025, following his appointment in July 2024.

Although his tenure was relatively short, he said the experience offered him valuable insight into the structural, financial and operational challenges facing the company.

The Minority Leader argued that ECG’s problems required comprehensive institutional reforms rather than partisan disagreements, repeated government financial interventions or electricity tariff increases that transfer the cost of inefficiencies to consumers.

He maintained that successive electricity tariff adjustments between April 2025 and September 2026 amounted to a cumulative increase of approximately 28.7 per cent, based on published average regulatory adjustments.

While acknowledging that tariff reviews could be necessary within a properly regulated electricity market, Afenyo-Markin cautioned that higher tariffs should not become a substitute for sound financial management, effective revenue collection and institutional accountability.

He noted that increases in electricity bills could place additional pressure on household finances, raise production costs, affect employment and weaken the competitiveness of businesses.

His position, he explained, was consistent with arguments he presented on behalf of the Minority before the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) during its multi-year tariff review in November 2025.

Afenyo-Markin also acknowledged improvements in ECG’s financial performance, citing figures presented at the company’s Annual General Meeting in July 2026.

According to the figures he referenced, ECG’s revenue rose from approximately GH¢19.03 billion in 2024 to GH¢22.11 billion in 2025, representing an increase of 16.2 per cent.

Its reported loss after tax also fell from about GH¢8.26 billion to GH¢2.52 billion, marking an improvement of approximately 69.5 per cent.

The company recorded a 31.3 per cent increase in new electricity connections, bringing the total to 222,979, while prepaid customers accounted for about 53.5 per cent of its customer base.

However, the Minority Leader cautioned that the reduction in reported losses should not automatically be interpreted as evidence of a complete financial recovery.

He attributed a substantial part of the improvement to foreign exchange gains estimated at GH¢12.16 billion, resulting from the appreciation of the Ghana cedi against foreign-currency-denominated obligations.

He argued that such accounting gains needed to be distinguished from genuine improvements in electricity sales, cash collections and operational efficiency.

Afenyo-Markin further highlighted the disparity between ECG’s electricity purchase costs and revenue.

He cited electricity purchase expenses of approximately GH¢34.8 billion in 2025, compared with revenue of GH¢22.11 billion, resulting in a reported gross loss of around GH¢12.7 billion.

He also pointed to the limited improvement in system losses, which declined marginally from 27.05 per cent in 2024 to 26.88 per cent in 2025, a reduction of just 0.17 percentage points.

He maintained that ECG’s progress should be measured by its ability to reduce electricity losses consistently, collect revenue efficiently, control spending and generate sufficient cash to meet its financial obligations.

The Minority Leader identified technical and commercial losses as major obstacles to the company’s sustainability, highlighting faulty meters, inaccurate billing, illegal connections, unbilled electricity consumption, weak collection arrangements and inadequate reconciliation procedures.

He argued that ECG needed systems capable of ensuring that all electricity distributed was properly measured, billed and paid for.

Among the measures he proposed were stronger revenue collection and reconciliation procedures, better-equipped field enforcement teams, consistent penalties for electricity theft and closer cooperation with local assemblies, traditional authorities and communities.

He also advocated an integrated digital system to improve revenue protection and operational oversight.

His recommendations included establishing a unified customer database to eliminate fragmented records and duplicate accounts, introducing smart prepaid and remotely monitored meters, and using Geographic Information System mapping to identify customer locations, distribution infrastructure and areas vulnerable to illegal connections.

He further proposed integrated digital payment platforms with automatic reconciliation, advanced data analytics and artificial intelligence tools to identify unusual consumption patterns.

Real-time management dashboards, he said, would also enable ECG to detect problems and take corrective action more promptly.

Afenyo-Markin stressed that these technological investments should be supported by effective data governance, cybersecurity protections, independent audits and clearly defined responsibilities for implementation.

He maintained that ECG needed to move beyond identifying revenue losses after they occurred and establish preventive systems capable of detecting and addressing weaknesses before they became entrenched.

The Minority Leader outlined three major interventions he believes could strengthen ECG’s finances and address broader problems within the electricity sector.

His first proposal centred on strict enforcement of the revised Cash Waterfall Mechanism to ensure that electricity-sector revenue is collected transparently, properly reconciled and distributed according to established, auditable procedures.

He called for regular publication of verified collection and disbursement figures, stronger regulatory supervision and accountability whenever funds were distributed outside approved arrangements.

His second recommendation was to review and renegotiate existing power purchase agreements where legally and commercially possible.

He argued that particular attention should be given to high capacity-payment obligations, inflexible take-or-pay clauses and contractual arrangements that no longer adequately reflect Ghana’s electricity demand and supply requirements.

He also advocated more flexible purchasing arrangements, including appropriately structured take-and-pay agreements, while emphasising that any changes must respect existing contractual rights, financing commitments and the need to maintain a reliable electricity supply.

The third intervention involved introducing an automatic settlement mechanism for electricity bills and verified arrears owed by ministries, departments, agencies and other public institutions.

Under the proposed arrangement, the Ministry of Finance would establish an enforceable system of authorised monthly deductions or budgetary offsets, supported by transparent billing, verification and reconciliation processes.

Afenyo-Markin argued that public institutions should not be allowed to accumulate unpaid electricity bills while ECG is expected to maintain financial discipline and meet its own obligations.

He also identified procurement and inventory management as critical areas for reform, drawing attention to concerns he said emerged during his tenure as Board Chairman.

He explained that some procurement arrangements could expose ECG to financial risks when suppliers presented shipping documents, including bills of lading, without adequate verification that contracted goods had physically arrived and been accepted by the company.

He clarified that bills of lading were legitimate international trade documents, but warned that financial liabilities could arise when payment obligations were triggered without sufficient checks on the delivery, quantity, specifications and condition of supplied items.

According to Afenyo-Markin, he led efforts at board level to strengthen the relationship between contractual completion, payment obligations and the verified acceptance of goods at ECG’s designated facilities.

The measures were intended to reduce exposure to delivery delays, port and storage charges, potential loss or damage, and disputes over whether supplied items met contractual requirements.

He maintained that procurement safeguards should form an integral part of ECG’s financial recovery strategy rather than being treated as a separate administrative responsibility.

He also supported stronger inventory controls, strict compliance with procurement regulations and improved operational supervision.

Beyond ECG’s internal challenges, the Minority Leader warned that the company’s financial difficulties posed broader risks to Ghana’s electricity supply chain and national economy.

He explained that unpaid obligations to power producers and other industry participants could restrict investment, delay maintenance, weaken infrastructure improvements and increase pressure on government finances.

He also highlighted the financial burden associated with contractual commitments, particularly capacity payments under certain power purchase agreements.

Referring to a 2026 assessment by the International Monetary Fund, Afenyo-Markin cited a projected energy-sector financial shortfall of approximately US$1.1 billion as an indication of the scale of the challenge.

He cautioned that periodic government bailouts might offer temporary relief but would not resolve the underlying problems without corresponding institutional and operational reforms.

The Minority Leader said ECG’s long-term recovery would depend on sustained efforts to reduce system losses, improve revenue collection, control expenditure, strengthen procurement procedures and meet contractual obligations.

He called for full implementation of the Loss Reduction Programme introduced in 2023 under the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia administration, alongside improvements in metering, electricity-theft detection and integrated revenue-management systems.

He stressed that the company needed to reduce its reliance on repeated tariff increases and government financial support by strengthening governance, enforcing accountability and setting measurable performance targets.

Afenyo-Markin expressed hope that the discussions with former ECG leaders and the current management would contribute to improving the company’s financial position, operational efficiency and service delivery to consumers across Ghana.

He also thanked Kpekpena and the management team for inviting him to the commemorative luncheon.

Source: https://www.modernghana.com/news/1535510/ecg-management-commends-afenyo-markin-for-reforms.html

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