Government settles almost 90 percent of Ameri power debt

The Ameri power plant was procured in 2015 by the previous administration when the West African nation was experiencing erratic power supply due to shortfall in electricity generation.

The plant cost US$510 million and it was to be managed by it owners for a period of five years and transferred to the Government of Ghana under Build Own Operate and Transfer (BOOT) agreement.

The Ameri deal was one of the numbers of power deals signed under the past administration which generated public anger with the then opposition New Patriotic Party accusing that administration of ripping off the nation.

Speaking to energynewsafrica.com, a source at the country’s Ministry of Energy disclosed that a little over US$447 million out of the total figure of US$ $510 million has been paid, representing about 87 percent as at November 2020.

“Government is paying and as we speak, we have written to the Finance Ministry to pay three months of the remaining debt which was deferred to be paid later,” the source said.

Per a document sighted by energynewsafrica.com which details the payment plan, Ameri has indicated its willingness to waive over US$2 million of the cost if government settles the remaining amount on time.

The source told energynewsafrica.com that Ameri power plant has been shutdown because the five years period was due in January this year.

According to the source, an independent engineer has been appointed and is currently assessing the condition of the plant after which the plant would be transferred to the Government of Ghana.

The source said the Government of Ghana would bear half of the cost of the assessment while owners of the power plant would bear the remaining cost.

The Government of Ghana has hinted of plans to relocate the Ameri plant from its current location in Aboadze to Kumasi in the Ashanti Region in a bid to stabilise the country’s national grid.