Claim: John Dramani Mahama, the 2024 flagbearer of Ghana’s opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), says the party increased the country’s power-generating capacity from 1,810 megawatts in 2007 to 4,292 megawatts in 2016.

Verdict: False. DUBAWA’s probe showed Ghana’s power-generating capacity did not increase from 1,810 megawatts in 2007 to 4,292 megawatts in 2016, as Mr Mahama alleged. The Energy Commission revealed that the country’s electricity generation per installed capacity rose from 1,935 megawatts in 2007 to 3,795 at the end of Dec. 2016.

Full Text

Ex-Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama said he worked during his time in office to secure the country’s energy future.

Speaking at the Energy Sector Forum organized by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr Mahama said by 2016, Ghana’s power-generating capacity was 4,292 megawatts.

“By 2016, we had increased Ghana’s power generating capacity from 1,810 to 4,292 megawatts, laying a solid foundation for a stable, reliable, and resilient energy system,” the ex-Ghanaian leader told a gathering of actors and policymakers in the energy sector.

See minutes 44:53 to 45:10 of the video posted on Facebook for Mr Mahama’s comment about Ghana’s power-generating capacity.

The social media data showed that as of Sept. 14, 2024, the video had received over 27,434 views, 440 shares, 870 comments, and over 2,632 likes.

DUBAWA decided to investigate Mr Mahama’s claim as part of its campaign against misinformation and disinformation in Ghana.

Verification

DUBAWA’s investigations showed Ghana’s power-generating capacity did not increase from 1,810 megawatts in 2007 to 4,292 megawatts in 2016, as Mr Mahama alleged.

The Energy Commission revealed that the country’s electricity generation per installed capacity rose from 1,935 megawatts in 2007 to 3,795 at the end of Dec. 2016.

Screenshot of page 6 of the Energy Commission’s report.

The Energy Commission’s report National Energy Statistics 2007 to 2016 (Revised) disclosed that the total electricity generation from the installed capacity in 2007 was 6,978 megawatts.

Also, in 2016, the electricity generation by plant (GWh) per installed capacity (MW) was 13,022 megawatts.

Screenshot of page 5 of the Energy Commission’s report.

The report revealed that of the 3,795 megawatts of installed capacity in 2016, the dependable capacity was 3,481.1 megawatts.

The Energy Commission’s National Energy Statistics released in 2021 also confirmed the revised 2007-2016 data released by the Commission in 2017.

The report, on page 8, showed that the installed capacity in 2007 was 1,935, of which 1180 was hydro and 755 was thermal.

In 2016, the installed capacity had shot up to 3795, with the generation mix being 1580 hydro, 2192 thermal, and 23 renewable energy sources.

Conclusion

Ghana’s power-generating capacity did not increase from 1,810 megawatts in 2007 to 4,292 megawatts in 2016, as Mr Mahama alleged.