ECG Retrieves Gh¢ 4.03million ... From 777 Customers Connected Illegally

The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has between January and September this year, retrieved a total of GH¢ 4,032,855.00 from 777 customers illegally connected to power without payment.

The amount represents the cost of 3,801.726 kilowatts hour (kwh) of electricity.

The illegal connections included meter by-pass, direct connections, meter tampering and unauthorised service connections.

The Accra West Regional General Manager, George Appiah-Kubi disclosed that the company was able to retrieve such an amount as a result of a massive revenue protection campaign launched earlier this year to rid the system of power theft.

"We formed a special revenue protection task force whose duty is to visit meters installed in the region and audit the authenticity of electricity connections in various facilities," he said.

"The result of the consistent monitoring by the task force has led to the retrieval of these monies which the Company would have otherwise lost," the General Manager said.

Mr Appiah-Kubi bemoaned the negative effects of power theft on the company's operations as it regularly restrained it from undertaking improvement and expansion projects.

It also impeded prompt payment to power producers for the power sold to ECG.

The Accra West Revenue Protection Manager, Ebenezer Yao Fiador, pleaded with the general public to volunteer information on illegal power activities.

He promised that the identity of persons who provide credible information would be protected, and would be paid a percentage of any amount recovered.

Mr Fiador assured that the revenue protection exercise would be intensified and institutionalised to achieve zero-per cent power theft in the region.

"We are collaborating with the security agencies and constantly revising our revenue protection tactics to stay ahead of the criminals," he said.

The Accra West Region of ECG has seven operational districts. These are Kaneshie, Korle Bu, Dansoman, Ablekuma, Nsawam, Bortianor and Achimota.

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