Accra, Oct 15, GNA – The Accra West Region of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has commenced the installation of new smart prepaid meters for residents of Wiaboman, a coastal community in the Greater Accra region.
The company hopes to replace a total of 4000 faulty meters, and serve new applicants with MMS-compliant smart prepaid meters under the Loss reduction programme (LRP).
The move is intended to enhance service delivery to the community, improve customer satisfaction and convenience, and reduce the Company’s commercial losses in the community.
At a community engagement held with residents of the Wiaboman community, ECG outlined plans to alleviate the power-related challenges that plague the community.
The acting District Manager for the Bortianor district, Ing. John Afanu noted that the replacement exercise was absolutely free of charge to customers.
He explained that the Company lost significant revenue from the community and hoped to seal the loopholes.
“With the smart prepaid meters, customers can buy power at anytime of the day at their convenience. The ECG Power app also allows customers to directly report power outages and challenges” he said.
The Revenue Protection Manager, Dr Mark Owusu Ansah, bemoaned the high rate of illegalities recorded in the area.
He noted that illegal connections posed a danger to residents of the community since they often lead to fire outbreaks and unstable power reliability.
“The ratings of the transformers we have installed in this community were based on an assessment of the electricity demands of the community. Illegally connecting to the grid without recourse to ECG over-burdens the transformer and will lead to transformer damage which costs the company more to replace.”
He cautioned that persons who were identified as engaging in illegality would be disconnected, surcharged for the stolen power, prosecuted for power theft and may be published in the media.
He also warned customers against the use of substandard cables to wire their premises, urging them to consult certified electricians to avoid fire outbreaks.
Speaking on behalf of the community, the Assemblyman for the area, Hon. Samuel Mensah, welcomed the engagement with ECG and assured the company of the community’s support to rid the system of any challenges and illegalities.
This, he agreed would improve customer satisfaction while giving ECG the needed revenue from the area.
Among community members who assembled for the engagement were the chief of Wiaboman, Nii Shantakplebi, local political leaders, other traditional leaders and community elders.
The customers were also educated on some of ECG’s recent innovations including the use of the ECG Mobile app and the shortcode, *226# for checking bills, making payments, and reporting faults.
The Accra west region covers eight (8) districts—Ablekuma, Achimota, Amasaman, Bortianor, Dansoman, Kaneshie, Korlebu and Nsawam.
GNA