Staff groups representing the Volta River Authority (VRA) and the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo) have rejected a government plan to bring private companies into electricity distribution in northern Ghana. These workers believe the proposed Private-Sector Participation (PSP) arrangement actually amounts to full privatisation. They raised their objections in a communication sent on March 25, 2026. This is a significant development for the future of energy services in the region.
The staff groups stated that the PSP arrangement would hand over complete operational control to private businesses. They feel this ignores the specific challenges faced by NEDCo in its operational area. The workers expressed concern that the plan would make many of the over 1,300 NEDCo staff idle. This would place their future employment in serious uncertainty. They examined the guiding framework for the PSP arrangement thoroughly before reaching their decision.
This opposition fits into a larger discussion about state-owned enterprises in Ghana. The government announced its intention to introduce PSP in electricity distribution last year. The Ministry of Energy and Green Transition formed a steering committee to manage this process. In December 2025, a guiding framework was released. The government presented this as a way to improve electricity service delivery and operational efficiency. However, staff feel the framework overlooks NEDCo's unique situation and the strengths of its existing workforce.
According to the VRA/NEDCo staff groups, the current conditions do not support private sector involvement in NEDCo's operations. They pointed out that electricity tariffs are often set too low. This is due to socio-political reasons. Such low tariffs would not attract investors. NEDCo covers 64 percent of Ghana's landmass. This includes many of the country's most deprived areas. These regions have low customer numbers. Many customers are considered 'lifeline consumers'. Their payments do not even cover the cost of buying power. The staff believe the challenges in the region are not due to a lack of human resource capacity or technical expertise within NEDCo.
The proposed PSP model would assign the private participant responsibility for delivering electricity from bulk supply points to customers. This includes all technical and commercial aspects of service. The staff question how NEDCo's substantial expertise, built over years of managing difficult conditions, would be utilised. They pointed out that NEDCo serves areas with challenging geographical and climatic conditions. These factors make operations difficult. NEDCo managed about 1,477,367 customers by December 2025. Much of its distribution infrastructure is old. It needs continuous maintenance and investment. The staff groups argue the current PSP plan does not sufficiently address these refurbishment costs. They believe no private entity would be motivated to serve these deprived areas and vulnerable customers with the same public good in mind that NEDCo has historically demonstrated.