By Elizabeth Larkwor Baah, GNA 
Lashibi, May 01, GNA — The Tema Region of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has had two of its transformers damaged because of illegal phase switching.
According to the ECG, this often happens when a phase goes off and some people decide to switch to a working phase, which ends up burdening the transformer and causing damage. 
Data from the ECG Region available to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) indicate that between the last quarter of 2025 and first quarter of 2026, the region recorded two of such transformers loses, one each at Santeo and Nungua. 
Meanwhile, Mr Emmanuel Ankomah, the General Manager of the ECG Tema Region, and an engineer, has appealed to members of the public to desist from such phase switching and rather report all phase off and general outages to the company for redress.
Mr Ankomah explained that replacing a single 200 kVA transformer costs approximately GHs 200,000, a financial burden that significantly affected the company’s operations and revenue generation.
He therefore urged the public to exercise caution and verify whether people working on transformers in their communities have been officially assigned by the ECG. 
 Mr Ankomah noted that transformer vandalism issues had been reported to the security services, public awareness had been created through the district assemblies, and local announcements had been made among many other measures to help curb the menace.
He said the ECG has established fault centres to respond swiftly to challenges, ensuring that consumers do not seek alternative power sources. 
GNA
Edited by Laudia Anyorkor Nunoo/Kenneth Odeng Adade
Reporter: Elizabeth Larkwor Baah, GNA