Staff groups of the Volta River Authority (VRA) and the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo) have rejected a government proposal to introduce Private-Sector Participation (PSP) in the distribution of power in the northern territory.

They said the arrangement would transfer “complete operational control to private entities, while ignoring the structural challenges peculiar to NEDCo's mandate."

They added that the idea was, therefore, “unsuitable for the unique operational context of northern Ghana," while the model “constitutes full privatisation disguised as participation."

The worker groups questioned, for instance, the future of NEDCo staff when the PSP arrangement could keep them idle for much of their engagement with the company.

In a communication dated March 25, 2026, addressed to the Minister of Energy and Green Transition, Dr John Jinapor, a copy of which the Daily Graphic has seen, the VRA/NEDCo staff groups said they arrived at their conclusion after “thorough examination of the Guiding Framework” of the intended PSP arrangement.

Concerns

For instance, they said, the arrangement under the guiding framework for private sector participation would leave asset management of key power distribution infrastructure in the NEDCo area in the hands of NEDCo, while the private participant would maintain control over technical and commercial issues.

These, the communication said, would compromise supply reliability (on/off), quality of service, and delivery efficiency, all on the technical side, and utility responsiveness (complaints), customer billing (coverage and accuracy), and revenue (collection and disconnection) on the commercial side.

This arrangement, the groups insisted, would leave the over 1,300 NEDCo staff largely idle and consequently thrust their future into uncertainty.

“It is worth noting that through years of practical experience and operational challenges, NEDCo management and over 1,300 staff have built significant capacity and expertise in managing and expanding electricity infrastructure.

“Would this limited role of NEDCo as an asset owner in the Guiding Framework require the retention of the entire workforce?” the communication asked.

Context/proposal

The government, acting through the sector ministry, announced plans last year to introduce the PSP model in electricity distribution.

In line with this, the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition constituted a steering committee to oversee the process and implementation of the PSP.

In December 2025, the government rolled out a guiding framework for private sector participation in the electricity distribution sector.

The initiative, according to the government, was a significant step towards strengthening electricity service delivery, improving operational efficiency, and securing a resilient and sustainable energy future for the country.

The guiding framework contained the structure to advance the agenda.

Group’s dissent

The VRA/NEDCo staff groups, however, contend that the prevailing circumstance did not support the intended invitation for private sector involvement in the operations of NEDCo.

For instance, they said “the persistent inadequacy of regulated tariffs," often set below cost-recovery levels for socio-political reasons, would not be attractive to any investor in the current form.

NEDCo is said to operate across 64 percent of Ghana's landmass, covering Bono, Bono East, Ahafo, Savanna, North East, Northern, Upper East, and Upper West regions and some parts of Western North, Oti, and Ashanti regions.

The area, the VRA/NEDCo staff groups stressed, had low customer density, where 39 percent of the customer base were lifeline consumers whose revenue contribution did not cover basic power procurement costs.

They said the challenges in the NEDCo area had nothing to do with human resource capacity or technical expertise to warrant the transfer of roles from the existing staff of NEDCo to a private participant.

“NEDCo operates in the most deprived parts of Ghana with challenging socio-cultural, geographical, and climatic conditions that make its operations and management highly difficult.

“NEDCo has a challenging domestic customer dynamic, which has grown gradually over the years to about 1,477,367 customers as of December 2025,” the communication stated.

It said NEDCo’s distribution infrastructure was aged and required continuous maintenance and capital investment to ensure reliability and network stability.

“The proposed PSP scope does not sufficiently address the high maintenance and refurbishment costs associated with this legacy infrastructure, which remains a critical determinant of operational performance,” the communication further stated.

It emphasised that no new private participant would have the motivation to serve the deprived area and its largely vulnerable customer base in a manner that would serve the simple public good as NEDCo had done up to this point.

Role, scope of PSP

By the terms set out in the guiding framework of the PSP, the private participant is to receive electrical power at the bulk supply points of the National Interconnected Transmission System (NITS), from where it would be solely responsible for the onward transportation and delivery of electricity to customers within the assigned zone.

Being solely responsible for servicing customers or consumers, the work scope of the PSP operator will include technical, commercial, and all other related functions.