The Managing Director of the Electricity Company of Ghana, Samuel Dubik Mahama, has debunked assertions that its new meters are a ploy to fleece Ghanaians.
According to him, the new meters work with the current tariffs therefore it shows the true representation of the lifestyle of customers.
His comments come after numerous complaints about the new biometric meters.
Mahama said: “On the other side, tariffs have also increased so it is not that ECG has intentionally put the meter out there to fleece our customers. No, we will not get anything from that. These meters are tested by the Ghana Standards Authority and ECG itself to make sure that they pass the quality test.”
The ECG boss agreed that the company has its inefficiencies but customers also have a role to play.
Earlier, he attributed the company’s woes to the depreciation of the local currency.
According to him, most of its operations are priced in dollars, therefore, if the dollar rises, it increases the company’s costs.
He also added that ECG pays power producers in dollars, another cost it has to bear.
Appearing before the Public Accounts Committee on August 12 Dubik Mahama said: “Our distribution cost going up is as a result of the forex. Most of our jobs that we do within ECG are all priced in US dollars. The meter, transformer purchase and other intensification jobs are all priced in dollars. The ECG now pays the IPPS and that is also done in dollars from its current jobs.”
Source: Ghanaweb