Have you ever chanced on any of the derisory posts about the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) on social media lately? Well, I have. There was this one which had the picture of a ‘box iron’ with the inscription “ECG Certified.” Another conveyed something to the effect that even the sun cannot illuminate the entire globe at a time, so Ghanaians should give the ECG a break. A particularly hilarious one was bandied prior to the just ended tourney in Brazil. In this, it was rumored that, after persistent and widespread entreaties of “Oh ECG don’t let us down this time” among Ghanaians, a foreigner was compelled to ask; “Why? Is ECG the lead striker of the Black Stars?”

Give a dog a bad name and hang it. In effect, the ECG has become the unfortunate dumping ground for the frustrations that has engulfed many a Ghanaian regarding our persistent power crisis. However, it must be said that the ECG is sufficiently guilty as charged. In my opinion, the national power vendor deserves every letter of the sometimes foul and terrible obscenities spewed at them. The waste that characterizes their operations, both technical and financial, is one that has ascended to completely sinful heights. Packing the board and administration of this state enterprise with clueless political party cronies may well take the cake as the inglorious last straw.

These inept ECG officials should remain eternally grateful to the advent of civil rule and an era of insipid democracy. Otherwise, the deserving punitive measure for their nonchalant recklessness, as may have been the case during the Military days, could have been flogging in public. They would have been flayed so hard that their tears will flow in copious volumes; enough to up the level of water in the Akosombo Dam for continuous power generation.

Talking of continuous power generation brings to the fore the crux of Ghana’s power crisis. As much as the ECG is guilty of mismanaging the power we generate, fact is, we do not generate enough to meet our local and export needs. The problem with our over reliance on the Akosombo hydroelectric plant cannot be over emphasized.

However, there are currently a number of gas plants that have been added to bolster the national generation capacity. Some of these plants are operational under Private Public Partnership (PPP) arrangements. However, more are the Independent Power Producers (IPPs) whose contracts with government are festering on the shelves than those in operation.

The singular reason for the inactivity of the IPPs is the problem of lacking sustainable feedstock (let’s call it gas) supply. Currently, operational IPPs and the national power generator, the Volta River Authority (VRA), depend heavily on the West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP) for gas to feed their plants. It is held that, when the Ghana National Gas Company (GNGC) begins supply, there should be some hope; at least for the medium term.

But the realities say otherwise. First of all, WAGP has proven consistently unreliable as a source of gas supply for our plants. The current labour unrests in Nigeria and the continuous onslaughts of Boko Haram are enough red flags indicating clearly that the WAGP option is not a dependable one. Secondly, the GNGC’s gas project is already showing signs of being one that is dead on arrival. The first reason for this assertion is the persistent failure to meet targeted completion dates. Secondly, the covert controversy around the technical capability of the technology adopted for the plant is one that presents a picture of a ticking time bomb.

The preceding scenarios portray a rather gloomy picture for our quest to attain sufficiency in power generation in Ghana. But the fact is, where there is the will, there is always a way. As things stand, resorting to Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) seems the only tenable option we have for a short to medium term solution. It can also be a very good option for the long term. This more than beats the current approach of having to re-engineer our plants to use light crude – which doesn’t only break down the plants eventually but is also far less cost efficient.

As opposed to the thinking that resorting to LNG will mean the need to invest heavily in the construction of a Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) and a habour, this need not be the case for the short term. There are FSRU vessels that can be leased on agreed terms and connected ashore via pipes to supply gas to our plants. This can deliver gas even under a year. A proposition which is heaven sent in terms of a short term approach to salvaging our crippling power sector.

This approach may appear to give a higher gas cost initially. But what is the cost benefit analysis in terms of the impact of incessant power outages? Again, to what end will be the megaphone calls on the citizenry to pay realistic wages for power if we cannot generate the power in the first place?

The greatest incentive to ensure the proposed LNG approach above is taken up will be the assurance of off takers for any entity that seeks to look into this business model. I believe it is time President John Mahama summons his team of experts to look at this option critically.

If for nothing at all, it will be in the interest of the President and his government to be provident in this instance. Because, 2015 ushers in an election year and as things stand, the projections cannot be good for the VRA and the other IPPs in terms getting gas for generation.

 At last, it remains President John Mahama’s call. Can he afford to watch the country sleep in unremitting darkness in the year that precedes his going back to the people to seek the renewal of their mandate? Well, let the political gurus find.