Ghana’s hospitality sector has raised concerns over the latest utility tariff adjustments, insisting that the government and the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) continue to overlook the true cost drivers.

Speaking to the media, the General Manager of Coconut Grove Regency Hotel, Ralph Ayitey, said the challenge is not simply high tariffs but the structural waste within the utility system that is being passed on to consumers.

Introducing his concerns, he said, “We will want to see utility tariffs rather going down, but the PURC is talking about the cost of production. I’ve heard that, for example, electricity, we have transmission losses of up to 40%.”

He continued, “That is quite high. That is very, very high. And as much as we can, it's very, very helpful that we plug that hole and gradually reduce it to the barest.”

Mr Ayitey added that addressing these inefficiencies would significantly ease the financial burden on businesses. “If we can cap in that hole of 40% losses, obviously there will be reduction,” he noted.

He concluded, “So for me, it's not necessarily about capacity, but it's about reducing the waste to the barest.”