Karpower withdraws May 18 shutdown notice – Energy Minister

John Jinapor, the Minister for Energy and Green Transition, has good news. Karpowership Ghana has withdrawn its shutdown notice. The company had planned to cease operations on May 18.

During a meeting with Parliament's Energy Committee, Jinapor explained the situation. He said, “We need about $1.1 billion to buy liquid fuel.” This fuel is not included in the tariff structure. Therefore, the government will spend nearly $15 billion on it.

Karpower warned that they would shut down due to unpaid debts. The government owes them over $400 million. Overall, independent power producers (IPPs) are owed $1.7 billion.

Jinapor highlighted a significant issue with the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG). They cannot collect all their revenues, leading to a monthly deficit of about 2 billion cedis. When factoring in fuel costs, total debts exceed 30 billion cedis.

In an interview with TV3, Jinapor confirmed Karpower's withdrawal of the shutdown notice. A roadmap has been created to address the legacy debt of $400 million. He stated that positive discussions have taken place with Karpower.

Ghana’s energy debts now exceed $3 billion when including ECG's obligations. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has flagged this as a critical risk for Ghana.

Jinapor reassured Ghanaians about the power situation. He announced that 450,000 barrels of light crude oil are arriving this weekend. Currently, there are 2.6 days' worth of fuel stock available.

He emphasized that there is no need for panic regarding power supply issues. With new fuel arriving soon, he believes everything will be okay and there is no looming crisis.