PURC fines ECG GHS36K, board members to pay hefty fine
The Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) has imposed a fine of GHS36,000 on the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) for its failure to submit all of its current bank and investment accounts to the Commission.
PURC had issued three requests to ECG with deadlines on March 25, March 27, and April 2, 2024. The requested information pertained to tariff revenue allocation under the Cash Waterfall Mechanism (CWM), submission of regulatory audit data, operational matters, and other related regulatory data.
In a letter addressed to ECG on Monday, April 15, PURC expressed dissatisfaction, stating that the details of the ECG’s submitted bank accounts were incomplete, which is contrary to Order 3.3 regarding the Submission of Information Related to Operational Matters.
The Commission has levied an initial regulatory penalty of 3,000 penalty units on ECG as per Regulation 45 of LI 2413, totaling Thirty-six Thousand Ghana Cedis (GHS36,000).
The letter specifies that ECG is required to remit the initial regulatory charge of GHS36,000 to the Commission by April 22, 2024.
Regarding compliance timelines, PURC stated that following the payment, ECG will be subject to an additional regulatory penalty of 3,000 penalty units for each working day that the requested details remain outstanding. This charge will accrue daily until compliance is achieved.
ECG Board Members to Cough up GHS5.868m
Due to ECG’s failure to comply with the 3-day statutory notice for planned outage notifications as mandated by Regulation 39 of L.I. 2413, the Commission has imposed a regulatory charge of 3,000 penalty units on ECG for each of the 163 breaches, totaling Five Million, Eight Hundred and Sixty-Eight Thousand Ghana Cedis (GHS 5,868,000.00), in accordance with Regulation 45 of L.I. 2413.
Recognizing the impact on ECG’s operations and service quality to consumers, the Commission has decided to transfer this penalty to the board members of the company, including ECG MD, Samuel Dubik Mahama.
“The Commission acknowledges that imposing a penalty of Five Million, Eight Hundred and Sixty-Eight Thousand Ghana Cedis (GHS 5,868,000.00) directly on ECG would be counterproductive given its ownership and operational nature. Such a substantial payment from ECG’s revenue would adversely affect service quality and consumers who rely on the company’s services and tariffs.”
“In the interest of justice and to safeguard consumer interests, the Commission holds the Board Members of ECG accountable for the payment of Five Million, Eight Hundred and Sixty-Eight Thousand Ghana Cedis (GHS 5,868,000.00), covering the period from January 1 to March 18, 2024.”
These board members were responsible for providing strategic direction to ensure the delivery of safe, adequate, efficient, reasonable, and non-discriminatory services to consumers.
The specified board members of ECG in office during this period “must remit the regulatory charge of Five Million, Eight Hundred and Sixty-Eight Thousand Ghana Cedis (GHS 5,868,000.00) into a dedicated fuel account jointly controlled by the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Finance by May 30, 2024.”
Furthermore, in addition to meeting ongoing obligations under the Cash Waterfall Mechanism, PURC directed ECG to disburse GHS446,283,706.29 to Category B beneficiaries under the CWM.
“This amount represents actual revenue collected by ECG, declared to the CWM, and approved by the CWM Standing Committee for payment from August 2023 to February 2024, which remains outstanding.”
Regarding compliance timelines, the Commission stipulated that ECG must settle the sum of GHS446,283,706.29 by or before April 30, 2024.
Failure to meet this deadline will result in accountability falling on the board members and management of ECG.