Senior Staff at VRA Demand Full Rejection of the Controversial Merger Bill

The Senior Staff Association of the Volta River Authority has insisted on the complete withdrawal of the contentious Ghana Hydro Authority Bill. As part of wider moves to revamp the energy sector of Ghana, the bill has raised an uproar among most people, especially among senior staff of VRA, who have argued that the bill threatens the very life of the nation.

House changes proposed in the bill would merge ECG with NEDCo and divest VRA of its thermal power assets, which would be incorporated into a new autonomous thermal power authority. According to Theophilus Tetteh Ahia, Chairman of the Senior Staff Association of the VRA, this would weaken Ghana's energy security. He emphasized that the VRA thermal plants produce more than 1,400 megawatts of power crucial for the country's energy stability.

Speaking on Citi FM, Mr. Ahia explained that although the Ministry of Energy has temporarily put a hold on the bill to review it, that is not enough for the association. He insisted that the change to be brought about would not be to the benefit of Ghanaians and would only hike the cost of electricity. The association is also frightened that transferring the assets of VRA to private investors will increase the price of electricity since VRA is currently selling the cheapest thermal energy as compared to IPPs.

The move by the VRA senior staff to call for a complete withdrawal of the bill reflects deep concerns that the legislation could cause harm not only to the energy sector but to national security. They are still optimistic that Parliament will listen to their concerns before any further action is taken.