Ghana: Workers Union Warns Of Possible Job Losses If Power Outages Continue

A labour union in the Republic of Ghana, the Industrial and Commercial Workers’ Union (ICU), is worried the current power outages being experienced in some parts of the West African nation could lead to shutdown of businesses and eventual potential job losses.

The union has, therefore, charged Ghana’s Energy Ministry to ensure that challenges in the power sector are resolved as soon as possible to avert job losses.

The West African nation has been experiencing power outages with the power transmission company, GRIDCo, blaming it on a number of factors including upgrading of their transmission network.

Commenting on the power situation in an interview with TV3, a television network in Ghana, the General Secretary of the ICU, Mr Solomon Kotei said the union was concerned about the current power outages, noting that it could lead to shutting down of businesses.

The ICU has since asked the government and the Energy Ministry to be truthful with the challenges in the power sector and if possible roll-out a timetable to guide the operations of industries.

“The government, through the Ministry of Energy, should be [truthful] with Ghanaians because all employers do long term planning so if the planning is that this thing is going on till the end of the year, we should know,” he said.

Meanwhile, the country’s Energy Minister, Dr Mathew Opoku Prempeh, has assured Ghanaians that the technical issues that have resulted in power cuts to some areas especially in the capital city would be fully resolved soon.

Dr. Prempeh told journalists on Tuesday April 6 when he paid a working visit to the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo) that “we are working feverishly to resolve the challenges which have arisen as a result of technical difficulties with our transmission lines and it is our hope that, that issue will be resolved by the end of the year,” he said.

He further said that most of the transmission lines are old and have not seen any changes.

“These lines that we have just been informed about were strung in the 50s and some in the 60s. The power it was supposed to transmit to Accra has increased tremendously due to the expansion of Accra yet the lines have remained the same.

“They are now giving us lines that can improve the power situation in Accra,” he said.

Source: www.energynewsafrica.com