The Minister for Energy and Green Transition, Hon John Abdulai Jinapor, has directed the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo), Mark Awuah Baah, to step aside following the recent fire outbreak at the Akosombo power control centre.
The directive comes in the wake of a major disruption to Ghana’s electricity supply system after the April 23, 2026, incident, which knocked between 720 and nearly 1,000 megawatts off the national grid. The impact forced a temporary suspension of electricity exports and raised fresh concerns about the resilience of the country’s energy infrastructure.
The Minister officially communicated the development for government communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, in a statement shared on his Facebook account on Sunday, April 26.
“Minister for Energy and Green Transition has asked the CEO of GRIDCo to step aside pending investigations into the fire incident at Akosombo power control centre.”
He further revealed that the government has initiated broader measures beyond GRIDCo, including a leadership shake-up within the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) in the Ashanti Region. The move follows widespread outages that affected homes, businesses, and industries in the region after the Akosombo disruption.
“Also, there has been a major shake-up in the leadership of the ECG in the Ashanti Region,” Kwakye Ofosu stated, highlighting the scale of the response.
As part of efforts to prevent future incidents, the government is rolling out a nationwide audit of all energy installations, set to begin on Monday, April 27, 2026. The audit is expected to assess vulnerabilities across the power distribution and transmission network.
Meanwhile, Hon Jinapor is scheduled to address the nation at a press briefing later today, where he is expected to outline further measures and provide updates on electricity distribution challenges.
“At 2 pm today, Minister for Energy and Green Transition, Hon John Jinapor, will hold a major briefing on recent developments in electricity distribution,” Kwakye Ofosu added.
