The unplanned power outage in Greater Kumasi in the Ashanti Region is due to pressure on the existing infrastructure.
According to energy expert, Kojo Opoku, the peak demand for power in the region has increased due to increase in population, putting pressure on transmission stations in the region.
“The Kumasi situation is unfortunate but the system has to be upgraded to serve the people better,” he stated in an interview on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen programme Tuesday.
Residents in Kumasi are up in arms with the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) over the erratic power supply.
The situation, they claim is impacting on their lives negatively. They are, therefore, calling on the ECG to provide a load shedding schedule for them to be able to plan their activities.
But Mr Opoku said the power outage in Kumasi is technical because Ghana has excess capacity of power to serve the entire country.
He explained that, the power outage is because the weak transmission lines cannot handle excess power.
“Two years ago, the engineers knew that we were going to have some of these problems. They were demanding for finances from government but Ministry of Finance never found the monies for these companies and it has gotten us here,” the the energy expert bemoaned.
Mr Opoku was certain construction of transmission stations in the region will reduce the burden and provide a more stable power.
He also urged the power distribution companies like ECG and GRIDCo to engage in public education to ease the pressure in the country.