Minister of energy Boakye Agarko has hinted of steps by government to reduce electricity tariff in 2018 as promised by the NPP government during the 2016 electioneering period.
At a news conference in Accra on Wednesday, September 27, the minister said this will be included in the 2018 budget to be read in November.
He explained, their intention when they took over governance was to address issues with power supply before tackling the cost.
Mr Agyarko said government is now ready to reduce electricity prices after managing to stabilize power across the country.
“Our next mandate is to reduce the prices which take several forms.â€
Five months into government, the NPP government abolished the excise duty on petroleum and a reduction of special petroleum tax rate from 17.5 percent to 15 percent but that has yet to affect the prices of electricity.
Ghana’s electricity tariff for commercial users is $0.32 per kilowatt hour while domestic users pay $19.28 cents for the same consumption.
But neighbouring Ivory Coast charges $0.13 cents for commercial users per kilowatt-hour and $9 cents per kilowatt hour domestic users.
Mr Agyarko explained the price disparity is due to the fact that the Francophone country produces cheaper power than Ghana.
“So we have to find a way to reducing the cost of production,†he said, hinting at the readiness of government to drive price reduction in tariffs by next year.
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