THE VOLTA RIVER AUTHORITY (VRA) in Ghana has said that contrary to media reports there is no imminent national power crisis, and states it does not expect the situation to alter.
VRA acknowledged that the last rains were lower than expected, resulting in a lower level of water in the Akosombo reservoir. The 134m high Akosombo dam, completed in 1966, has an installed capacity of 912MW, the largest power generating station in the country. Although hydro generation will be low this year, thermal generation sources can fully complement hydro supplies to meet the load demand, as the utility generates both hydro and thermal power. VRA said the estimated total demand for 2002 is 8575GWh, out of which hydro sources will provide about 4950GWh (58%), while thermal sources and imported power will provide the remaining 3625GWh.
This is a significant increase in thermal power generation compared to 2001, when the total demand was met from 79% hydro and 21% thermal.