ECG’s $145m meter procurement breached Public Procurement Act – AG Report

The Auditor-General’s (A-G) report has uncovered that the Electricity Company of Ghana’s (ECG) procurement of meters, which exceeded $145 million, violated the Public Procurement Act.

The report also revealed that ECG was unable to fully recover the excess of GH53.9 million identified through monitoring and did not take legal action against customers involved in electricity theft, which could have served as a warning to others.

The audit spanned from August to December 2022 and examined the period from 2016 to 2021 at various ECG locations, including the headquarters, Metering and Technical Services (MTS) Division, the Materials and Depot in the Greater Accra Region, as well as four selected Regional and nine district offices.

“ECG signed 50 contracts to procure 862,750 meters and its accessories amounting to USD145,010,153.92 over the audit period without adhering to the requirement of the Public Procurement Act.”

“During our audit period, ECH was unable to recover all the GHC 53,988,463.31 that it detected through monitoring, and failed to prosecute customers who were engaged in power theft to serve as a deterrent to others,” the report stated.

In a letter sent to the speaker on June 2, 2023, the A-G, Johson Akuamoah Asiedu, recommended that the ECG should ensure all procurement activities comply with the Public Procurement Act to guarantee value for money.