GRIDCo assures of adequate power
The Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo) has assured the general public that there is enough power available for distribution by the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG).
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According to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GRIDCo, Mr William Amuna, while the generation peak presently stood at 1,956 megawatts (MW), the peak demand yesterday stood at 1870 MW.
Parts of Accra have been experiencing power outages over the last couple of days, raising concerns that the country might be returning to the era of load shedding, popularly known as ‘dumsor’, but Mr Amuna discounted the claims.
“Occasionally, we will have some challenges in the distribution networks, but that does not mean we don’t have enough power”, Mr Amuna told the Daily Graphic on the sidelines of the company’s 2016 Safety and Health Awareness Day celebrations in Tema yesterday.
Mr Amuna’s assertions thus reaffirm the position of the ECG that the current power crisis is not an indication of power crisis or the return of load shedding.
Plants available
While the Sunon Asogli Power Plant is presently out of production due to natural gas supply challenges, the Tema Three Power Plant, Kpong Hydro Plant, Takoradi International Company (TICO) are all in production, giving total megawatts of 1631.3 as of 12:14 p.m. yesterday, and indications are that production volumes would rise by close of day.
The Karpower ship and the Ameri Plants are also producing 224 and 210 megawatts respectively.
Importation
Mr Amuna described as normal Ghana’s importation of some quantities of power from neighbouring Cote d’Ivoire.
“Virtually every country in the world imports power even if there is available generation capacity. Moreover, it is imperative that we import in order to reduce pressure on the Akosombo Dam”, Mr Amuna stressed.
He gave the assurance that the company would continue to work hard to address the challenges within the company’s distribution networks.
Workers durbar
Earlier, addressing the workers, Mr Amuna charged them to adhere strictly to the health and safety regime to ensure high efficiency in the company’s operations.
“We work in a very challenging and dangerous environment and I will urge all staff to continue to do their best to eliminate incidents and accidents within the workplace.”
Mr Amuna said incidents and accidents at the workplace might bring injuries and fatalities which were most often stressful for the individuals involved as well as for their families and friends.
He therefore charged the staff, especially those in the technical units, to be very conversant with their safety procedures and practices to avert injuries and loss of lives.
Mr Amuna (2nd left), the CEO of GRIDCo, presenting the Overall Best Safety Awareness Award to Mr Godwin Worlanyo Abotsi (3rd right) and his team from the Prestea office
Stress reduction
According to the CEO, safety management practices would help reduce the stress that the demands and challenges of their operations brought to the staff, and urged them not to compromise on occupational and safety health measures.
“Effective stress management also requires that we nourish our bodies properly on a regular basis with the right food and sufficient water,” he said.
Mr Amuna disclosed that his outfit was putting in measures to review and implement its personal protective equipment policy for operational staff since it bordered on the safety and welfare of staff.
He said the company had also decided to prioritise the safety measures as part of the road map for the certification process of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) 180001-2007 by organising training workshops for all its managers and unit heads.
Accidents
The Director of Network Performance, Mr Eric Asare, said GRIDCo recorded eight accident this year, most of which were minor while GH¢98,747.68 was paid as workmen’s compensation to affected staff. Again a total of GH¢111,521.47 was paid under the GRIDCo group life insurance policy.
Mr Asare said although the number of accidents recorded was below the industry and international benchmarks, it was important to improve on the performance through prevention or minimisation of such accidents.
Specialised awards were presented to some staff members for their commitment to safety, while the Prestea area office of GRIDCo emerged the overall winner of the Company’s Work Area Safety Committee (WASACO) Awards.