1,200MW lost after Akosombo fire: Power outages to be repaired within weeks, ministry assures

Ghana’s Energy Ministry said a recent fire at the Akosombo Dam had knocked out about 1,200 megawatts of electricity, triggering widespread outages and straining the national grid.

Richmond Rockson, spokesperson for the Ministry of Energy, said the incident—described as unforeseen—accounted for a significant share of recent disruptions.

“We have lost about 1,200 megawatts within the period, which has had a strain on our generation,” he said on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Tuesday (28 April).

The outage followed a fire that affected a key control system linked to Akosombo, one of Ghana’s major hydropower sources, which alone contributes over 1,000 megawatts to the grid.

Rockson said engineers had restored two of six affected units, with full restoration expected by the end of the week.

“We are making progress… by the weekend we should complete the work,” he said, praising technical teams for working “day and night” under difficult conditions.

Beyond the incident, the ministry acknowledged underlying challenges in the power distribution system, including overloaded and ageing transformers, some of which have been in service for decades.

“Until we replace obsolete infrastructure and deal with overloaded transformers, there will be intermittent outages,” he said.

Rockson added that ongoing upgrades—part of what he described as a “crash programme”—could lead to temporary, localised outages as engineers replace faulty equipment.

He urged the public to rely on updates from the Electricity Company of Ghana, which is issuing daily notices on affected areas.

On claims of possible sabotage, Rockson said there was no evidence to support such assertions.

“I do not have any evidence to back claims of sabotage,” he said, adding that investigations were ongoing.

The ministry called for public patience, noting that the outages followed more than a year of stable electricity supply.

“We are working tirelessly to resolve the problem… this short period will be a thing of the past very soon,” Rockson said.