Transmission lines reliability increased by 50% in parts of Western Region

The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has partnered with Genser Energy, a Gha­naian energy company operating in the Western Region, to undertake projects to boost power supply to about 58 communities in the Western Region, Genser Energy has said.

It said through the collabora­tion which involved the clearing of overgrown vegetation along the EGC transmission lines, power reliability in the Western Region has increased by 50 per cent.

According to Genser Energy, overgrown trees and plantations under ECG lines were interrupting power supply to the Western Re­gion and the 58 communities.

Genser Energy said an assess­ment it conducted earlier this year identified numerous trees and plantations under the transmission lines within the allowable distance and said the removal of high-risk trees would not only enhance the reliability of electricity supply to es­sential facilities but also contribute the overall stability of Ghana’s national grid.

Consequently, Genser Energy said early this year, ECG partnered with it to clear vegetation under its lines which posed a risk of disrupt­ing power supply to 58 communi­ties reliant on electricity transmitted through these lines.

The statement said to ensure community participation and support, Genser Energy engaged over 200 stakeholders, including traditional leaders, local assembly members, and Project Affected Persons (PAPs).

Under the supervision of Genser Energy’s Construction Su­perintendent, Stephen Ayisi, teams selectively trimmed branches and removed high-risk trees posing a threat to the transmission lines.

Mr Ayisi said since the clearing of the overgrown vegetation, the communities in Western Region had enjoyed an improvement in power supply.

He said there had been a 50 percent reduction in power surges that caused power cuts in these communities between January and March this year, due to the cleared vegetation along these lines.

The Chief of Wassa Old Subri, Nana Twumasi Ampaakwaw II, the statement said, had been deeply concerned since 2022 about the en­croachment of trees near the trans­mission lines in his community.

“Every day while leaving our farms, we feared that we would come back home to no lights be­cause a tree had fallen on the lines,” he said.

Nana Twumasi Ampaakwaw II said those trees had been progres­sively growing, posing a threat to the community’s power supply.

Justice Kofi Yeboah, a PAP from Accra Town, expressed grat­itude to ECG and thanked Genser Energy for providing employment opportunities and improving com­munity safety.

 BY TIMES REPORTER