ELS: MBN360 NEWS
A temporal shutdown at the West African Gas Pipeline Company’s (WAPCO) Regulating and Metering Station at 05:33 GMT, on thursday July 30, has disrupted gas supply to several thermal power plants, compounding Ghana’s power supply challenges.
The shutdown occurred after liquid accumulation was detected around a filter separator at the facility, causing the station to trip automatically. The disruption has cut gas supply to major thermal plants, including TTIP, Bridge Power, Amandi Tema and Aksa, resulting in reduced electricity generation and forcing the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo) to implement load management in parts of the country.
The latest development comes barely a day after a nationwide power outage linked to a disturbance on Ghana’s national interconnected transmission system.
Speaking on the situation, Policy Lead at the Institute for Energy Security, (IES), Derrick Xatse told Energy News that the two incidents expose structural weaknesses in Ghana’s electricity transmission network.
“Our power system is only as strong as its weakest link. Even when there is sufficient generation capacity, inadequate transmission infrastructure can trigger the kind of widespread outages we are seeing,” he said.
Mr. Xatse explained that electricity demand has outpaced investment in transmission infrastructure, placing significant pressure on ageing transmission lines and substations.
“The demand for power has outgrown the transmission capacity that we have. If demand continues to grow and what is supposed to carry the power is not being upgraded, then there will be so much stress on the system,” he noted.
According to him, the recent nationwide outage stemmed from a disturbance within the national interconnected transmission system, which caused generating plants to trip and were offline.
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He stressed that the incidents underscore the need for a more resilient transmission network capable of restoring electricity quickly whenever faults occur.
“What we need is a resilient system. If anything happens, there should be alternative paths to restore power within the shortest possible time,” he said.
Mr. Xatse called on GRIDCo to ensure its ongoing technical investigation goes beyond identifying the immediate trigger of the outage.
“GRIDCo should not only determine what caused the immediate disturbance but also take a holistic look at upgrading the transmission infrastructure so that the system becomes more resilient,” he added.
On the WAPCO shutdown, he explained that the interruption in gas supply has directly affected several gas-fired power plants.
“Because the Tema Regulating and Metering Station tripped, we do not have gas going to several thermal plants. As we speak, these plants are unable to generate power,” he said.
He warned that without sustained investment in transmission infrastructure, Ghana could face more frequent and widespread power disruptions as electricity demand continues to increase.
“Infrastructure upgrades must be continuous. They should keep pace with the growth in power consumption so that we do not continue to find ourselves in situations like this,” he said.
