Tax analysts are renewing calls for long-term reforms to fix persistent inefficiencies at the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), arguing that tariff hikes cannot continue to be the default response to the utility’s operational and financial challenges.
Their concerns follow the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission’s (PURC) announcement of new tariff adjustments that will raise water tariffs by 15.9% and electricity by 9.8%, effective January 1, 2026.
Tax analyst Francis Timore said the water tariff review may be justified due to the cost pressures created by illegal mining activities, but insisted that ECG’s problems are largely self-inflicted.
“The realities we face stem from the state’s inability to curb illegal mining. These are not operational failures by Ghana Water but spillovers from broader governance challenges. In that sense, the water tariff increase, though unfortunate, reflects unavoidable external costs,” he noted.
“However, this justification cannot be extended to electricity tariffs. At the distribution level, numerous long-standing inefficiencies remain unaddressed. Technical and commercial losses, billing inconsistencies, revenue leakages from power theft, and managerial gaps continue to undermine ECG.
