Energy Ministry to construct mini-grid to boost electricity supply in Island, under-served communities – Ghana Business News
Mr John Abdulai Jinapor, the Minister of Energy and Green Transition has performed a ground-breaking ceremony for construction work to commence on 35 mini-grid and 1,450 home-system energy supply in the Bono East and Savannah Regions.
A mini grid is a set of small-scale electricity generators and possibly energy storage systems interconnected to a distribution network that supplies electricity to a small, localised group of customers that operates independently from the national transmission grid.
The project, according to Mr Jinapor was in line with the Scaling-Up of Renewable Energy Programme (SREP) being implemented by the ministry aimed at expanding affordable, reliable and sustainable energy mix in under-served communities.
At a short ceremony, held at Lala, an Island community in the Sene East District of the region, Mr Jinapor said access to electricity in the island communities would facilitate the growth of education and promote quality healthcare delivery services.
That, he added, would further open the communities for business growth and economic development, and thereby help stem the growing trend of rural-urban migration.
Mr Jinapor said the SREP would build and install about 12,000 net-meter roof top solar systems, nationwide, assuring the government commitment to extend electricity to island communities in the country.
“The SREP represents a strategic investment in rural economies, and to empower the people”, he stated, stressing the ministry commitment to bridge the nation’s energy gap.
On completion, Mr Jinapor said Island and deprived communities in the Sene East District of Bono East including Lala, and those in the Savannah and Oti Regions would benefit productive use of energy, and foster gender mainstreaming too.
He urged the people to cooperate with the contractors owned and supported in the construction of the project for the nation to derive the optimum benefit.
Madam Eunice Biritwum, the Executive Secretary of the Energy Commission stressed the commission’s commitment to ensure that the overall goal of SREP was achieved.
In that regard, she said the Commission had drafted a regulation for mini-grids, in line with government 2017 and 2019 policies which promoted the development and utilisation of min-grids in deprived communities, especially island and lakeside communities.
That, she added, was also in line with the nation’s bid to achieve universal access to electricity by 2030.
“The government policies have adopted a public sector approach to the development of mini-grids in the country”, Mad Biritwum stated, explaining that the mini-grids development was being financed by grants and conceptual funding.
She said the Volta River Authority (VRA) was responsible for managing and operating the generation of the distribution of assets in the customer services of all government funded island mini grids on Volta Lake.
She said the Public Utility Regulatory Commission (PURC) was also working with the SREP project to put in a tariff framework for mini-grids billings, assuring the commission’s commitment to support the government’s flagship programmes on energy.
Madam Magdalena Wust, the Deputy Head of Cooperation at the Swiss Embassy in Accra said the Swiss government was also committed to supporting Ghana to provide reliable, affordable and sustainable energy for all.
She said: “energy security “is fundamental for every country’s developmental agenda since it carries innovations, deployment models, energy technologies and significant scaling efforts to ensure the supply of electricity”.
Mad Wust highlighted the importance of electricity, saying “it improves the economy of every country, especially the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)”, and urged stakeholders to contribute to the successful completion of the project.
Source: GNA
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