You're lying, your 7-11pm dumsor attributed to overloaded transformers is false – PURC exposes ECG

The Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) has refuted the Electricity Company of Ghana’s (ECG) claim that transformer overload was the primary cause of recent power outages between 7pm and 11pm.

The ECG had attributed many of the localized blackouts in parts of the country to transformer overload, citing an increase in the number of consumers per transformer over the years.

While acknowledging the strain on transformers due to increased demand, the PURC sought clarification from the ECG, requesting data on transformer usage to substantiate their claims.

Upon analysis of the data provided by the ECG, the PURC found that out of 715 transformers, 31 were loaded less than 70%, 595 were loaded between 70-100%, and 89 were loaded above 100%.

Contrary to the ECG’s assertion, the PURC discovered that the majority of power outages between 7pm and 11pm were not solely due to overloaded transformers. Instead, they were primarily attributed to load management operations by GRIDCo and faults unrelated to transformer loads.

“ECG’s attribution of the outages between 7 pm and 11 pm to transformer overload was therefore not factually accurate,” the PURC stated.

The PURC emphasized that only a small fraction of the outages during this period were planned transformer-related maintenance works, further debunking the ECG’s claim.

The Commission stated that investigations into the actual causes of these outages are already underway, reaffirming its commitment to ensuring a reliable and transparent power supply for consumers.