Fabrimetal manufacturing company has been taken off the national grid by the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG).

The large-scale iron steel manufacturing company owed the power distribution company ¢28 million in electricity bill debt over a five-month period.

The ECG taskforce team said the disconnection has become necessary because the company has refused to make any payment.

B5 Plus Steel company

Earlier this morning, the task force team made a stop at the B5+ steel company in Tema, after the company swayed the ECG yesterday by offering a post-dated ¢20 million check.

B5+ steel company currently owes ECG ¢48 million debt. The company was forced to cough up some ¢20 million in part payment to avert having been disconnected.

According to the External Communications Manager of the ECG, Laila Abubakari, the team “had to generate an invoice for them this time around to make sure that they pay.”

“So, we instructed them to go straight to the bank and make the payment right away, and we will receive the alert on our phones. If by the time we return from our other rounds and they do not pay, we will be compelled to take them off,” Laila added.

Some concerns raised by the companies visited include the high cost of production, and high import levies due to the cedi depreciation, among others.

But reacting to the concerns, Laila Abubakari noted that “the ECG understands these concerns but the fact of the matter is that, we are also a company who need these monies to pay our bills.

“In any case, this is a power that they have already consumed to produce their materials, most of which they have already exported out of the country.”

The exercise continues to other companies.