Don’t panic, we will be okay – John Jinapor assures Ghanaians over potential power crisis

John Jinapor, the Minister of Energy and Green Transitions, has urged Ghanaians to stay calm. He addressed concerns about a potential power crisis in the country.

Yesterday, he described the current power situation as concerning. Jinapor stated that Ghana has only 2.6 days’ worth of fuel for power generation.

He spoke to members of Parliament's Energy Committee. Jinapor said, “We need about $1.1 billion to buy liquid fuel.” He added that this fuel is not included in the tariff structure.

The government will spend nearly $15 billion on liquid fuel. This cost must be covered by the central government.

Jinapor mentioned that Karpower plans to shut down its plant on May 18 due to unpaid debts exceeding $400 million. The Independent Power Producers (IPPs) are owed $1.7 billion, which is serious.

He explained that ECG struggles to collect all payments. This results in a monthly deficit of about 2 billion cedis for ECG’s collections.

When considering this deficit and fuel costs, total liabilities exceed 30 billion cedis.

However, during an interview with Citi Eyewitness News, Jinapor provided some reassurance. He confirmed that the government has procured 450,000 barrels of light crude oil arriving this weekend.

He reiterated, “We have 2.6 days of fuel stock.” But he emphasized that with the new shipment coming in, there is no need for panic.

“We will be okay,” he assured listeners. “There is no looming power crisis.”