Per reports from JoyNews the Millennium Challenge Corporation has indicated that despite the ongoing power crisis, it has no current intentions to resume operations in Ghana and has officially concluded Ghana’s Millennium Challenge Compact.
In March 2019, Ghana was poised to receive vital funding of approximately $190 million aimed at ensuring the long-term sustainability of infrastructure investments and financial recovery in the energy sector as part of the second tranche of the MMC power compact.
However, due to a failed 20-year concession agreement with Ghana’s Power Distribution Services (PDS), where PDS was supposed to take over the operation and management of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), the US government suspended the transfer of funds, citing private sector participation as a pivotal reform under MCC’s Ghana Power Compact.
At that time, the U.S. Government expressed its anticipation of continuing collaboration with MiDA and the Ghanaian government to execute the remainder of the Power Compact.
In light of Ghana’s resurging power crisis, experts have advocated for financial support for the energy sector, which is burdened with a debt exceeding $1.5 billion to Independent Power Producers (IPPs).
The country’s Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) further disclosed a deteriorating situation where the southern distribution company ECG was defaulting on its renegotiated fixed monthly energy purchase price of US$43 million with all IPPs.
When asked about the possibility of MCC providing funding once more and extending support under the compact, Alice P. Albright, the CEO of MCC, stated, “We did have a compact with Ghana and the compact is closed,” noting that significant progress was made during that period.
Albright further informed JoyNews’ Blessed Sogah during the Thursday, May 9, 2024 press briefing organized by the U.S. Department of State that while she acknowledged the importance of energy to Ghana’s overall development, immediate support from MCC for Ghana was unlikely.
“Right now we don’t have any immediate plans to work again in Ghana, but we can always look again to see if Ghana may be,” Alice added.
Despite Ghana not being an immediate priority, the Millennium Challenge Corporation mentioned that it is engaged in several energy compacts across the continent to address Africa’s growing energy needs.