…NDC furious
The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) is highly incensed at the renaming of the 250-megawatt (MW) power production plant from the African and Middle East Resources Investment Group, otherwise known as AMERI Power Plant to “Kumasi Power Plant,” calling it deceptive and shameful.
The Volta River Authority (VRA) has announced plans for President Nana Akufo-Addo to commission what would now be known as the Kumasi 1 Thermal Power Plant at Anwomaso in the Ashanti Region.
The move has since caused a stir, as some members of the NDC, have accused the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) of deploying deceptive means to rename the Ameri Power Plant.
In a Facebook post shared by the Authority confirming the president’s attendance for the commissioning, it wrote; “5 days more to the commissioning of the Kumasi 1 Thermal Power Plant (K1TPP) at Anwomaso, in the Oforikrom Municipality of the Ashanti Region. Stay tuned for more updates.”
Reacting to the development in a Facebook post, the NDC Director of the Legal Directorate, Godwin Edudzi Tameklo, accused the Akufo Addo-Bawumia administration of misleading the Ghanaian people, especially people in the Ashanti Region.
He mentioned that the government has decided to rename the Ameri Power Plant to Kumasi 1 Thermal Power Plant.
He argued that the renaming of the power plant is a deliberate ploy to deceive Ghanaians, particularly those residing in the Ashanti Region, where the plant is located.
He also called for vigilance among Ghanaians and urged them not to fall for what he views as a misleading tactic by the current administration.
He further asserted that the Ameri Power Plant, initially procured by former President John Dramani Mahama, was intended to address the country’s enduring power challenges, boasting of a capacity to generate 25 megawatts of electricity.
Edudzi Tameklo in his post also acknowledged John Mahama’s role in acquiring the power plant as part of efforts to alleviate the country’s power crisis during his tenure.
“Bawumia and Akufo-Addo, out of shame, have decided to repackage and rename the AMERI plants as Kumasi 1 Thermal Power Plant. This is what they are planning to go and commission.
“This corrupt, incompetent, useless and wasteful government are determined to hoodwink voters in the Ashanti region with the renaming and repackaging.
“This administration has failed to do anything meaningful in power generation,” he posted.
The government on February 1, 2021, resumed ownership of the 250-megawatt (MW) Africa and Middle East Resource Investment (AMERI) thermal power plant according to terms of the deal.
The Dubai-based firm arrived in the country back in October 2015 to assist in resolving the power crisis at the time.
An agreement was then signed by the erstwhile John Mahama government at a total cost of US$510 million on a Build, Own, Operate and Transfer (BOOT) basis.
But Edudzi is not alone as Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, Minister of Energy and Petroleum in the John Mahama administration from 2013 to 2016 has also waded into the matter writing that “the Akufo-Addo and Bawumia administration’s latest stunt in the energy sector epitomizes their penchant for deception and lack of originality.
He insisted that “by shamelessly rebranding the Ameri Power Plants as the Kumasi 1 Thermal Power Plant, they are attempting to conceal their incompetence and lack of substantive progress with a facade of false achievements.
“This blatant move to rename existing infrastructure in a bid to claim credit for the hard work of their predecessors not only lacks integrity but also insults the intelligence of the Ghanaian people.
“Under the visionary leadership of John Dramani Mahama, the Ameri power plants were strategically deployed to combat the debilitating power crisis known as ‘dumsor’.
“These plants, each capable of generating 25 megawatts of electricity, served as a vital lifeline for the nation during a time of dire need.
“However, rather than acknowledging the foresight and proactive measures taken by the previous administration, Akufo-Addo and Bawumia chose to discredit, vilify, and undermine Mahama’s initiatives for their own political gain at the time.
“Fast forward to the second year of the AKUFFO Addo/Bawumia government. They hurriedly decided to renegotiate the Ameri agreement by extending the five-year deal with Africa and Middle East Resources Investment Group (AMERI) Energy the operator of the 300MW emergency power plant in Ghana to 15 years and dubiously bringing onboard a new company from Greece, Mytilineous International Trading Company, to manage the plant for the remainder of the contract period.
“But for the vigilance of the NDC minority in parliament and civil society organisations, Ghana would have ended up paying over Ghc1 billion under the new arrangement.
When the President was caught, he shifted the blame by claiming that he was “misled” and consequently fired the then Energy Minister, Mr.Boakye Agyarko.
“Fortunately, the Ameri plant is now fully paid for and rightfully owned by the people of Ghana.
“But that was not the end of the drama, the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia administration made the decision to relocate six units of the plant to Anwomaso in the Ashanti region, a move intended to generate 150 megawatts of electricity for the middle belt of the country.
“By generating 150 megawatts of electricity for the middle belt of the country, the government sought to create a facade of progress while conveniently sidestepping the broader challenges plaguing the energy sector.
“The Akufo-Addo-Bawumia government’s renaming spree is not limited to universities but now extends to the power sector.
“The rebranding of the Ameri Power Plants as the Kumasi 1 Thermal Power Plant is not merely a superficial change but a cynical attempt to distort historical facts and mislead the public about the true origins of this critical infrastructure.
“It is however important that the people of Ghana do not forget the history of the Ameri power plant.
“The Akufo-Addo-Bawumia government’s pattern of renaming projects initiated by previous administrations is a clear reflection of their lack of innovation and leadership in the energy sector.
“The once-thriving energy sector that was bequeathed to this government by President Mahama has regrettably been eroded under their watch. We are currently struggling with Dumsor due to the indebtedness made worse by this administration.
“The good people of Ghana deserve leaders who are committed to honesty, accountability, and genuine progress, not hollow promises and superficial gestures.
But Ben Boakyea of the African Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP) has also reacted to the relocation by focusing more on its cost.
He wrote “Ministry of Energy signed a sole-sourced relocation and operation contract to move the Ameri Power Plant to Kumasi for $71m, which PPA approved. When we exposed it, the ministry said there was no contract.
“We were told VRA engineers were not capable of managing the plant 2. It would have cost us $71M if Mytilineos had proceeded with the relocation and management contract.
“Interestingly, The PPA wrote back to say the information was exempt from disclosure. Now, VRA has relocated the plant using its engineers, with support from Manning Group. It’ll still be relevant to know how much was spent on the relocation, particularly that;
“We requested information under the RTI from the PPA on the justification for the sole-sourced contract. The PAA wrote to us to pay 1000 cedis for the info. We challenged the payment of 1000 cedis because we thought it was inconsistent with the RTI and the Fees and Charges Act, the ACEP Boss concluded on his X platform.
